Orion the Sorcerer
by cooldude01
Summary: This is a cross-over of KOF & Diablo 1/Hellfire. Rated T for slight swearing & violence. Chapter 10 is up, & so is the fusion of all the chapter parts. Enjoy, & please leave a review with some constructive critism. Negative comments are not acceptable.
1. The prologue

_******Alright. This will be a cross-over of Diablo, KOF, & Yu-gi-oh(No characters from Yu-gi-oh, but rather, the spell & traps themselves). I don't own The games & I have no right to take these games or characters away from the original creators. That's the truth, the real & undeniable truth; the unvanquished truth.**_

_**Pairings: Ninon/The Sorcerer. The Sorcerer will henceforth be known as Orion. This story will be a bit violent. Minor to moderate to major sadism, but not much swearing. Please, relax, read & enjoy. On final note,**_ _"this"** is when people are thinking while**_ "this" _**is when people speak.**_

_The Prologue_

_**South town- 8:37 P.M.**_

There was a girl who was skipping along the sidewalk happily with a gigantic bag, just literally stuffed with books. The girl had a dress style that was truly an enigma really, as well as rosy pink hair along with big pinkish reddish eyes. The books were anything but ordinary; they were spell books. Her intentions were to learn a plethora of spells & drastically increase her spell casting abilities. This childish, yet cheerful girl was Mignon Beart. Her wish; to seek world peace... or at least that's what she told others. From her build, you really wouldn't expect her to accomplish that, but appearances can be deceiving. Quite deceiving, as a matter of fact.

Her matriarch, or grandmother, was a witch; her spell-casting abilities were unparalleled. There were only two people who were following in her footsteps; Mignon, & her younger sister, Ninon Beart.

Ninon wasn't like Mignon. Her dress style being Gothic Lolita, with roses on her skirt & a head-band fused with a rose; she had silvery-white hair. Ninon thinks her spell-casting ability is a power tool, & it's one she doesn't hesitate to use as she pleases. Really, She was the dark witch. Her dress style is quite different from her sister, & she is... scary in the sense that, just being around her, you would get the feeling that something isn't right, like as if she was sadistic. The sisters never really got along. Ninon only seems to be pleased when she causes mental/emotional (& sometimes physical, albeit though mostly caused by magic) anguish. Usually, that's normally what she does to Mignon, or others who are unfortunate to cross paths with her. Unless she's actually feeling merciful; the chances of that happening, however, are almost greater than the population of the entire world.

Mignon was heading back to the mansion, humming a tune, when she saw a small boy, possibly 11 to 15 years of age, wearing a strange outfit, consisting of mostly red & white leather, running away from someone wearing a mask. He rushed past Mignon, trying to put very much distance behind him. The masked assailant kept following him. There was something that caught Mignon's attention. The outfit the assailant was wearing looked a bit familiar. She was wearing a dress that reminded her of her sister. Mignon ran towards the man & the assailant, in hopes of confirming her suspicions.

The man made a sharp turn down one place & into the alley. He then tried to confuse the assailant by making several turns down the corridors. He also pulled off a trick; one that made a barrier of earth & gravel. It was very thick, & it would take some work to break through it.

_" Must keep running. I need to make sure she does not retrieve the cargo I carry with me.",_ He thought before continuing his escape. Feeling exhausted, He then ran down the alley & then came to a place where he would have to make a choice for which direction to go at a slower speed. His mind was racing, his heart pounding. He chose to go left. He then went down one area & into a hidden pathway that led underground. He looked around as he ran along the hallways. There were candles of red &/or white color. He then came across an area where there were two statues that looked like minotaurs. He also found an iron door. He tried to open them . . . to no avail. That's when he concentrated his energies & thoughts for a moment. He then blasted the gate open with a smallish bolt of fire. He closed the door after passing through, making the same barrier he did earlier.

' I would like to see her get through my barriers. I can now walk without much worry.", He said. He turned & ran towards the other gate. He then heard a noise. Coming to a stop , he checked his surroundings.

_" Is someone around here?", _He thought. He proceeded to run while checking around one last time. He then bumped into something & landed on the floor. It was the same one he was being pursued by! The assailant took off the mask. It was a girl with silvery-white hair. Her face & hands were very pale, almost ghastly. She had a dress that consisted of roses embedded onto the skirt. It was pitch-black, from her sandals to her neck. She now had a head-band with the black rose fused with it. Orion knew who he was dealing with now...

"Are you going to do that again, my handsome little boy?", The girl said, smiling a little about the impact. Orion ran from her upon hearing the flirtatious comment & although he tripped, he just kept moving. He definitely did not want to be caught by her. Orion made it to the iron doors, but they wouldn't open; when Orion turned around, Ninon was reaching for his arm. He made 5 back flips, but lost balance when he tripped on one of the rocks behind him.

" It is a pleasure to see you again, Orion... why are you running though?", she said. Orion didn't seem to be listening; his eyes widening in fear were a dead giveaway.

" Get away, Ninon!", Orion shouted.

She didn't answer, & with that, she started to walk towards to him. Orion crawled back, but he was backed into a wall. He had to think of a way out of this mess. But before he found a way, Ninon cornered him. He was trapped like an animal, fresh for the slaughter! Orion was struck with fear & almost completely scatter-brained to no end, thinking that he would be doomed due to her efforts.

" Do not bother resisting. It's quite pointless. Though I like seeing people squirm, I have plans. I really would like to see them through to the end.", Ninon said a bit alluringly. It seemed as if she wanted to calm him down a little. But He knew better. He knew not to fall for any type of trickery.

Ninon knelt down & wrapped her arms around Orion. She stared right at him, her eyelids lowering; she moved close to his ear, then whispered a very soft tune while speaking in an unknown language. Orion started to feel _really_ drowsy. He felt like he could just fall asleep standing. He then rested himself on her arm. Ninon had a subtle smile of accomplishment, feeling like she could make anyone obey her every command.

" You are a big fool, you know.", Orion said. Ninon stopped singing & stared at him with an evil glare. Her grip around him started to tighten. It seemed as if Orion had a trap just waiting to be sprung towards her. Ninon was a little confused, thinking that she had him in her grasp; she had him in her arms, literally.

" You fell right into my trap!", Orion said. He started to conjure his energies & thoughts. In three seconds, he vanished! After two seconds, a circle of magic binded her, preventing her from moving at all. He had actually tricked Ninon. Ninon was shocked to see him perform a trap on her like that. Ninon turned around to see Orion run off behind her; he was unleashing holy bolts towards her as he ran.

She was enraged! She broke the spell-binding circle, the energies that surrounded her were sent flying all over the place, screams of anger & rage erupting from the dark witch. She pulled a trap of her own before the young one could escape. In three seconds, the youth was literally _engulfed _in chains. Each chain was linked to another, as well as a wall of magic. She made a leap toward him, but before she could, Mignon showed up. She continuously stomped on Ninon until she was down on the ground, subdued.

" Ninon! What do you think you're doing?!", Mignon screamed at her sister. Orion took this opportunity, teleporting out of the chains of darkness. He casted a spell that made a red portal. He went in, vanishing into the crimson vortex. Ninon looked at her sister & a foul frown soon erupted from her face.

" You overgrown, backwards idiot! I should be the one asking that question!", Ninon said to her sister. Ninon then blasted Mignon with a gigantic ball of electricity. Mignon was knocked back into the wall. She struggled to get up after the maelstrom of a spell Ninon unleashed against her, but managed to get to her knees & finally onto her feet.

" I only want Orion. I don't want some immature brat in my way, let alone a freak.", Ninon exclaimed. "I need to figure out where he got his other magical spells! If I have to, I will actually torture him & anyone who gets in my way if need be! Now Mignon, you better stay out of my damn way! Otherwise, I will extinguish your very existence & obliterate you. Do you understand me?!", Ninon said, her eyes becomings very narrow & her anger seemingly increased.

Mignon's mouth dropped. " What is the matter with you? Why are you so mean & cold hearted?", Mignon shouted at her sister. " I mean, that boy didn't deserve what you were about to do to him! Why?! Mignon wants to know!", She screamed at Ninon. Ninon went for the red portal & went through. Mignon followed, in hopes of trying to stop Ninon's insanity.

Mignon found herself at a somber, twilit village. Mignon went over to find her sister, & see what happened to the boy. She found Orion speaking with a man , seemingly in his 60's. He wore a blue robe & had a huge walking stick. She jogged towards the twosome, wondering why he was being chased.

" Are you okay? Where's Ninon?", Mignon questioned.

" The town elder & I were just talking about her. She has been causing some major havoc in the church over there. Not too many people remain in the town of Tristram. I hope I can stop her, but I need to fortify my abilities & stop her. I need to hurry though before all is lost.", Orion finished. Mignon stared in disbelief. Mignon knew her sister was mean, but she never thought Ninon would get demented & cause major mischief!

" Orion, it is time you ventured into the dangerous labyrinth, & find out what happened down at the desecrated temple, & soon. Whatever she is up to, we cannot allow her to get away with this.", The town elder advocated; the young sorcerer nodded in agreement.

" Mignon will help you & stop that delinquent little witch! come on, Orion!", Mignon shouted, causing both men to raise their eyebrows.

" Um... alright. We should head to the desecrated church. We should proceed with caution, as it is quite dangerous.", Orion told her. They both walked over to the church, only to discover a gruesome scene. A man near the entrance is on the ground, dying... both rushed over to investigate.

" What happened?", Orion asked.

" Please... Listen to me", he started to speak very weakly," The arch-bishop Lazarus. He led us down he to find the lost prince. The bastard led us into a trap! Now everyone is dead. Killed by a demon he called the butcher. Avenge us! Find this butcher & slay him, so that our souls may finally rest...", The man finished, & within several moments, he passed away. Mignon started to cry, despite not knowing him.

" Your death... will be avenged!", Orion said. Both of them walked into the cathedral & found a stairway that plunged down into the still darkness. They proceeded into the church, still unaware of what they were really up against in the godless abattoir of the unknown...

_**Alright. This is chapter one known as "The Prologue". The adventure begins here. I really thank you for reading one of the many chapters that are to come. I do not know how I'm going to be able to thank you for your time, but I would even be more appreciative if you left a review. Thank you for your time, ladies & gentlemen. Oh, & if you try to flame me, the flames will be treated as sacrifices to the dark Ninon/Mignon/Kula Shrine! Constructive criticism is appreciated.**_


	2. The first floor & the encounter

_**Alright. This chapter two. I do hope you're enjoying the product of my labors. Please relax & enjoy the story.**_

_The First Floor, & the encounter_

_**Tristram, Nightfall.**_

They made it to the first floor of the cathedral several minutes later. Upon their arrival, they noticed the interior of the desecrated church; as nice as it once was back then, the drastic changes to the church were more horrifying than what even seems possible. The room was dark, but the torches around the area lit it up somewhat. The sarcophagi were unopened, but the stench coming from it was noticeable. There were also barrels around the area, but they weren't broken or smashed.

They traversed the desecrated church, aiming to defeat the evil within the labyrinthine dungeon, when Mignon beckoned Orion.

" What does Ninon want from you, Orion?", Mignon asked. " It is my magic abilities. They sparked some interest in her & she wants them very badly. I did not think it would be wise to allow her access to the books. She actually tried to force me to duel her.", Orion said.

" Did you win?", Mignon questioned, seemingly worried.

"Although I barely beat her, she came up with a cheap tactic; one that left me powerless to defend myself. She only got a few of my books, but she didn't get the remaining ones I had.", Orion continued, his eyes closing up a little. " But my abilities must grow stronger if I am to defeat Ninon.", Orion said.

" Looks like we have company!", He added. Several small people showed up with pole-arms such as spears & other forms of weaponry. Together, there were 18 of them, 9 armed with pole-arms; others were armed with a shield & a small sword.

" Can you fight, Mignon?", Orion asked.

" Mignon can do more than just fight!", She said, as intense heat & energy started to form on her right hand; a huge fireball was created in no more than 10 seconds. Orion's eyes widened as she unleashed the maelstrom of fire on the imp-like creatures. Only three of them were still standing; others were just lying in the floor, dead. Orion blasted the remaining few with smaller, but nevertheless, deadly fire bolts.

The two traveled through the labyrinthine church; however, not without opposition, as there were several more of the smallish imps & other horrors from beyond the grave. Namely, zombies & skeletons. Orion had with him a short staff. Mignon, her magic & Chinese boxing combination; together, they thrashed through the opposition. The zombies were blasted by what looked like fire bolts, except they were white. Mignon gave several kicks to the skeletons, crushing there fragile bones & scorched the pint-sized imps to a crisp. They only found 4 large chests; 1 containing a staff that glowed mysteriously, the other three contained large amounts of gold; the amount? 600 gold total. They also found 3 books, though Orion held onto them for obvious reasons.

After clearing out the opposition, they found a second stairwell that plunged deeper into the still, deep-seated darkness. Orion formed an idea after a few moments worth of time.

" We should back to town. We need to drop off & sell the spoils, Get rested, & come back. We can not just finish this in one fell swoop. It would be tantamount to suicide.", Orion explained.

" Mignon agrees. Mignon's so tired, Mignon could fall asleep standing!", Mignon exclaimed. " Why can't Mignon have a look at those spell books? I believe it can benefit good!", She reasoned, to no avail.

"I cannot let let these books fall into the wrong hands! I do not think it would be wise to let you use them.", Orion returned, giving his reasons to Mignon.

" Mignon is not like her evil little sister you know. Ninon's quite mean & cold hearted, really. Ninon always will stop at nothing to pull off the meanest tricks, & anger anyone who meets her! She's the bad witch, not Mignon!", she finished. Orion made a blue portal & signaled for Mignon to go through it.

" I did not know you were also a witch. Then again, it does answer a few questions; such as, how you incinerated those foul little imps, & Ninon's ability to appear out of nowhere. I think we all know how mad she is.", Orion said, grinning. He remembered his encounter, & thought Ninon wasn't being truthful.

He walked toward the blue portal, when he noticed Mignon was staring at the opposite direction. " What is it, Mignon?", Orion asked. The only response he got was a giggle. They both recognized the noise; they prepared for the worst, feeling real edgy...

" Why don't you two give up? I'm beginning to think your heads are thicker than improved plate mail.", The assailant said, before stepping out of the shadows. It was Ninon. " We all know you can't do a thing to stop me, so why try & resist? Is it fear of what might happen if you did surrender? Is that making you do this? Or are you two just ignorant?", Ninon said. Lightning energy started to charge from her left hand & she aimed it at Orion, only to have Mignon perform the same thing; they both shot at each other at the same time. Both attacks were stopped dead in its tracks.

Mignon traded blows with Ninon, when Orion got behind Ninon & smacked her with his staff. The blow knocked her to the floor, but before Orion could deliver the final blow, she teleported out of the way & behind Orion! He barely dodged before she struck him, & unleashed a fire bolt at her. She reflected it, & this time, Ninon unleashed the lightning spell. It crashed through his defenses & sent him flying into the wall. He landed on his feet, then unleashed a white bolt of magic that made Ninon fall to the floor, coughing.

" You will never take me alive!", Orion screamed, quickly rushing over towards Ninon with his staff.

' Please keep me away from the fire... unless you want me to burn...", Ninon said softly before teleporting away. Orion was just confused about that. This is the second time she has acted really strange & abnormal. They just fought... yet she just acted as if she was his lover!

" Um... okay?", Orion said, arriving to her last location a little too late.

Orion was completely dumbfounded upon hearing that. Mignon's eyes raised a little. They went through the azure vortex, still confused about what Ninon said. The next thing they both knew, they were behind the blacksmith shop.

After dropping off the spoils & raising the amount they had to 1500, Orion & Mignon went over to a house to the left of the taverns owner. The door was open, & noise could be heard inside the house. Out came a man, most likely in his 40's to 60's; a handbag on his shoulder, his hair white, although balding a little, this man had an aura around him that made you feel welcome.

"What ails you, my friend?", He said in a nice tone.

" Nothing, master Pepin. May I purchase a few provisions, such as those bottles with red medicine? The ones in particular are the small doses.", He asked in a polite way. He handed him 300 gold, while Pepin in turn handed Orion 6 small bottles with the red liquid. After that, they turned their attention elsewhere.

" Well now... This is probably one of the strangest days of our lives, eh Mignon?", Orion said when they arrived at a hut, referring to what happened in the labyrinth.

" Mignon knows...", She responded, still confused about her sister.

" I sense a soul in search of answers...", Someone said. There was a huge pot that was cooking something. Out of the hut came a woman. Her skin was quite pale, her whole outfit completely pitch-black as well as her hair. This lady seemed quite frightening at first glance.

" I am Adria the witch. You two must be the people who went down into the dungeon earlier. Do you need to buy a staff from me? Or perhaps a spell book?", Adria finished.

Mignon was completely ecstatic, almost to no end. She kept asking where she learned her magic, trying to get something out of her . . . that is, until Orion slapped her with the staff. " She is no Information maid, Mignon.", Orion said in a firm tone.

" I would like to sell off these books. Next, what do you have for spell books?", Orion said in a polite tone.

" Here you go, Orion.", Adria the witch said. " Since you were being polite, I will give you a nice spell no sorcerer or sorceress should be without.", Adria responded. " I speak of course... The 'Mana shield' spell.", She added. " 'While the spirit is vigilant, the body thrives' as they say; one for each of you.", Adria finished, handing over two spell books. " Now please; do be careful. I bet your enemies would love nothing more than to get their hands on these special books, let alone you.", Adria added, turning back toward the hut.

" She's not being fair! She wouldn't tell Mignon her secret!", Mignon said, pouting.

" Mignon, not to sound like your sister, but life really wasn't fair. Ever. If it was, I think we would have been finished sooner than we would think. We would be depressed if we got everything we wanted.", Orion said. " Besides, she gave us two spell books; ones I do not think we should ever be without it. This spell could prove vital in the battles ahead!", He added.

" One more thing; would you rather buy it for 16,000 gold? Because that is how much it would be for just one of them. They do not sell cheap!!", Orion finished. Mignon's mouth dropped like an anvil that crashed to the floor, due to what she just heard.

They both when to the tavern, which was owned by one of the hardest workers around Tristram, next to Griswold. " Greetings, good master! Welcome to the tavern of the rising sun.", he said, giving off a feeling that he was no slacker. The feeling made them both smirk.

" Do you mind if we stay the night?", Orion asked, yet again in a polite tone. " We can pay.", he added.

" Alright. 150 gold, good masters.", He responded while taking the gold from Orion's hand. They walked into the dimly lit tavern, heading for their rooms. They entered their rooms, beginning to read their books they received from Adria. After almost an hour of reading, they went to bed, completely drained of energy.

_**Alright, this is chapter 2. Again, I do not know how to repay you all for your time. Please review. Thank you for your time, once again & have a good day or night, ladies & gentlemen.**_


	3. The 2nd Floor & The Arrival of Mike!

_**Alright. This chapter three. I do hope you're enjoying the product of my labors. Please relax & enjoy the story.**_

_The second floor, & the Arrival of Mike!_

_**Tristram, late morning. 11:45 A.M**_

Orion awoke the next morning; quite rested, though a little dizzy. He headed right for the door, equipped already in less than 50 seconds. He arrived at Mignon's room, only to find no one there. He went outside & found storyteller, Cain, telling Mignon stories; she seemed to like them very much.

He wondered why she had such a cheerful, yet eccentric disposition. As he pondered, he noticed a shadow that seemed to be moving. He wasn't moving but the shadow was on its own. But no one was nearby.

_" What is going on?",_ he thought, deciding to follow the strange creature. He followed it through the strange twilit village & right to the graveyard.

The gateway into the graveyard was next to the cathedral they went through; the place in shambles, save for the tombstones. It was quite mortifying... due to its image; the whole place was a mess. He went through the gateway, staff in hand.

When he got through the gateway to the graveyard, he lost track of the strange creature. He looked around, checking behind the gravestones & looking for any sign for it. He found it again, but it really wasn't a shadow, or at least not anymore. It started to morph into a shape he recognized. It looked exactly like Ninon, save for the fact she was just completely engulfed in pitch-black darkness! Orion's eyes raised a little, as it began to take shape, its eyes opened; they were the same color as Ninon's. The only difference was that they were completely soulless. Orion backed up a little as he thought about running, but before he could even do that, the shadow vanished!

" Where did it go?", Orion said out loud. He never encountered such a being. As he turned around, he saw the same shadow right being him, pointing at him with a sword; the image, skulls fused with a black metal blade; readying itself, she swung it at Orion. He avoided it, however, & then unleashed a white bolt of magic at her.

The fight continued with Ninon's shadowy onslaught, unleashing several sword swipes recklessly like a wild bull. She kept trying to make a direct hit, but she never even scratched him. Orion smacked her twice with the staff, then unleashed 6 more holy bolts at the strange shadowy copy of Ninon. It was now no more than a pile of dungeon debris. The sword vanished after 20 seconds. Orion checked around to see if Ninon or anyone else around that conjured up this grotesque beast. There was no one around, not even Mignon.

_" Ninon must be up to no good, yet again.", _Orion thought. He then returned to the tavern to tell Mignon what he saw...

" That was Ninon, alright! Mignon can tell! She can control puppets that look like dolls. she can be quite scary, even at the most unwelcome of times. Mignon knows!", She exclaimed upon hearing Orion's report.

" I thought so. The only one who can do this other than Ninon, is Adria the witch, but what could she possibly gain from killing me?", Orion said, lost in deep thought. " Lets pay her a visit. I have a feeling she would enlighten us about this.", He finished. Before they could leave, Pepin showed up, tired.

" What is it Pepin?" Orion asked, a bit confused about Pepin.

" I'm glad I caught up to you in time! Our wells have become brackish & stagnant, & some of the townspeople have become ill drinking from them!", Pepin said, seemingly scared to no end. The duo's eyes widened.

" What happened to the wells?", Mignon asked, puzzled. Pepin shrugged.

" I believe there is a tunnel that leads to the underground lake. Please find what has caused this calamity, or we will all surely perish.", Pepin said. " You should look in the cathedral & see what happened. I should warn you though; its quite dangerous!", Pepin added.

" Pepin? Have you heard of 'The Butcher'?", Mignon asked. Pepin's eyes widened, as if he just saw through thousands of nightmares.

" By the light, I know this vile demon! There were many who bore the scars of his wrath upon their bodies, when the few survivors of the charge led by Lazarus, crawled from the cathedral.", Pepin said. Orion & Mignon looked at each other, then back to Pepin.

" I don't know what he used to slice open his victims, but it could not have been of this world! It left wounds festering with disease, & I found them almost impossible to treat!", Pepin said. Mignon's legs started shaking, while Orion started to sweat.

" Beware if you plan to battle this fiend. Thinking of the wounds I saw scared me nearly to death.", Pepin finished, heading back to his house. " I almost forgot. The gateway should be on the second floor of the cathedral. As your healer, I suggest you do not take any chances.", Pepin added. " Also, Farnham lent a ring to one of the townsfolk when they went into the labyrinth. Look for his ring.", Pepin said, confusing Mignon.

" Why should Mignon & Orion keep an eye out for a ring?", Mignon questioned.

" The man who had it was probably killed by him down there; he never returned & Farnham fears the worst. He said that he saw the man he lent the ring to was killed by him, or at least was being hacked at by the demented fiend. Orion, you know what to do.", Pepin finished. "Ask Farnham. He's behind those huge rocks in front of my house. He knows what the ring looks like.", he said before going into the house.

Orion went towards the huge boulders, & found a man drinking ale. He was a sad sight; his clothes were a mess, his face just filthy. Orion wondered if he really went into that nightmare of a dungeon. The man didn't even look like he could fight. Orion walked up behind him & beckoned; he took no notice. not until the third time he tried to speak to did he not take the notice.

" Can't a man drink in peace?", He said, shaking his tankard wildly.

" Are you Farnham?", Orion asked, raising his right eye up a little.

" Why of course I am!" He exclaimed. A sound indicated he was drunk. " Griswold! Good old Griswold. I love him like a brother! I was with him when were... Lazarus... Lazarus. Lazarus!", He started screaming. Then he started to cry. Mignon came to him & patted him on the back.

"What happened?", Mignon asked.

" Big! Big cleaver killing all my friends!! Couldn't stop him, had to run away!! Couldn't save them! Trapped in a room full of bodies, so many friends! Noooooooooo!!", He cried out loud, as if he suffered a dozen heart aches.

" Farnham, was there a ring on one of your friends? We would like to know what it looks like. That way, we can end that fiends madness.", Orion said, lifting Farnham moods up a little.

" How... hic! How can you... use a ring to defeat a monster like, hic, That?", Farnham asked, obviously confused.

" The ring will serve as a rendezvous point. A lead, if you will.", Orion explained.

" & if you want, Mignon can return it to you.", Mignon said, trying to cheer him up.

" Silver & black was its color. Please, stop him... All his fault...", Farnham said, still sobbing.

Orion & Mignon headed back to the tavern to think of what they should do against the encroaching darkness...

_Meanwhile..._

" Well now. I didn't expect the boy to put up that much of a fight. 14 year-old sorcerer, yet... he's quite strong.", Ninon said, looking at what was left of the shadow puppet she unleashed against Orion. Her accomplices were several goat demons & more of the small demon-like imps. they were a bit different. One groups color was more azure, while others were more crimson. They were in a cave near a river with stagnant yellow water.

" Hey! How you make river full of taint?", One of the red imps asked.

" I casted a spell upon the six goats. As long as they live, the river will stay stagnant & tainted, or until they relinquish it by dispelling it.", Ninon answered., looking at the yellowish water with dire famine.

" What we do against fools?", the goat-like creature said, scratching his lower-back with his mace; its voice sounding like a goat. Ninon looked at him. She had a mischievous look that made the whole group take a step back.

" Pleeeease! No hurt! No kill!! Keep alive!", The demon groveled, getting on the ground covering his head.

" Shut up. Get off the ground & listen. Keep them out of the cavern. If you fail me, I will kill you. Do you understand?", Ninon said, scowling. The goat was paralyzed with fear.

" Yes. Me serve. Live, live! No pain, & promise I keep!", The goat said, groveling still. She started to aim her arm directly at the goat demon & charged up an electric maelstrom spell. He was utterly at her mercy, due to being cornered. She stopped at the last moment to see the look on his face. He was crying on the floor, making sobbing, yet still goat-like, sounds. Ninon's scowl turned into a subtle smile.

_" He may have beaten a weaker 'me', but there is no way that he can ever defeat me. Besides... I doubt he will even be a match for him.", _Ninon thought, looking at the piece of the now inanimate puppet._" I want to see what he & my damn sister can do against the butcher. I don't believe that they cleared out the first floor of the labyrinth.",_ she thought, walking around the river.

" Keep them busy. I am going to watch some events unfold.", She said. " Do what I say, or else.", Ninon threatened him yet again before vanishing away. The goat-demon just couldn't imagine what she would do to him. He was scared to no end. He picked up his bow & alerted his minions to get ready for combat upon their enemy's arrival.

He was too scared to stay still, as he paced back & forth. His five other goat demon brothers did nothing but stare at him; they could only feel sorry...

_3 hours later..._

After getting ready, They headed towards the cathedral for their next onslaught. They went down the steps & into the deep seated darkness. They headed for the second set of stairs that led deeper into the shadows of the godless abattoir. They made it to the second floor without any interference. The room they were in was completely dank & cold. Mignon shivered at the sight of the area, as well as the temperature. There was only one door that led to another area. Mignon was the first to run straight at it. Orion grabbed her & signaled for a stop.

" Do not be foolish, Mignon, Think what is behind the door. There could be a trap, or worse, 'The Butcher' may be right behind the door, lying in wait." Orion whispered to Mignon. Mignon completely turned white as a ghost upon hearing that.

Orion went in front of Mignon & got his spells ready. Mignon did the same; charging the fire bolt to its maximum potential. Orion opened the door, but to their amazement; there wasn't even one skeleton! Mignon sighed, while Orion just slapped himself. What they did find however was a library with skeletal tomes & book cases as well as several scrolls tied. Orion smiled upon the discovery as the twosome cautiously walked right in.

They found 6 books & 8 scrolls; 2 scrolls of 'inferno', 'lightning','lightning wall' & 'firewall'; the books, 1 'holy bolt' book, 2 'healing' & 'heal other' books, & 'charged bolt'. Orion checked around, making sure not to leave anything behind. Mignon noticed another door to the left of the first one the entered. They found a hall way that had a fork in the road. They had to make a choice. Where to go first; to the left...or to the right?

Before they could make a selection, several skeletons armed with maces & clubs. Mignon was about to unleash her fiery maelstrom, when Orion stopped her. He then unleashed several holy bolts upon the skeletons. Only one remained & it didn't look like the average skeleton; it beckoned them.

" Are you Orion & Mignon?", It asked, holding a black sword & a split shield.

" & if we are?", Orion responded, keeping his hand on his staff.

" Then this is the hour of your demise! I am Bonehead bang-shield, one of the greatest fighters around here! I have been given orders to bring you to master Ninon; also, she wanted me to kill Mignon. I assume that's her.", The skeletal warrior said, laughing. Mignon scowled, real upset at the undead being for laughing at her.

" This is going to be too easy! You're no match for me, you weak little sorcerer!", The undead being bellowed, rushing toward Orion. Orion smirked & unleashed his staff upon him. Bonehead was knocked back, & struck up on his head. He was then knocked back by several holy bolts. Next Orion went in for the final blow, when he blocked & tried to hack Orion; he avoided his sword & then unleashed 3 more holy bolts until he was brought to his fragile knees. Mignon delivered the final blow by unleashing her fire bolt at it's maximum potential. The bone-like being was reduced to dust in a mere matter of seconds. The only thing left was a cap that had a strange amount of energy. Orion could feel the power flowing through his hands. He kept it in his inventory for safe keeping.

They then turned their attention to the fork in the road. They decided to go to the right. They went on, fighting more zombies & Imps. Mignon started scorching them repeatedly with fire bolts; each one just turned into ashes. They turned, screamed & ran for cover. Orion blasted them with fire bolts & then unleashed several charged bolts; they were all exterminated, each dropping like flies.

They found a room that was centered around a giant chamber. There was a foul stench coming from it. It made Mignon almost drop to the floor. They opened the door slowly & went in. There was a huge fat monster that looked as though it was tough as nails. Orion started to sweat again, Mignon started to shake, her knees-a-knocking.

" Look! A ring! & its silver & black!", Mignon said loudly, walking over to the corpse who had the ring equipped on its middle finger. Orion's jaw dropped. That was the worst ( & needless to say, dumb) move you can make while you're near someone as dangerous as that freak.

"Watch out Mignon!!" Orion said. Mignon ducked in time to see the face of the assailant. He was a bigger mess than Farnham; his tattered apron was soaked with bloodstains; the cleaver, absolutely filthy. There was no doubt now; he was 'The butcher'!

"Ah. . . Fresh meat!", the creature bellowed.

Orion & Mignon ran off & ducked down threw a few corridors & found a door. They both went through it, slammed it shut. 'The Butcher' crashed into the door & fell face up. There were no other doors, just steel gratings that were sealed shut. 'The Butcher' tried to open it, but couldn't open it. He tried to destroy the gratings; to no avail. he started to get angry, while Mignon just laughed at him. Orion smirked.

" What is the matter? Do not tell me that you can not open a door.", Orion said. " Oh well. This is the end!", he finished. Mignon along with Orion started slinging spells. They roasted him with fire bolts, aiming to incinerate him. He tried to dodge, though he wouldn't get out of range. Mignon charged up her fire bolt to its fullest & unleashed it towards the diabolical monster. He was knocked back & struck to a daze. Orion opened the door & then delivered the final blow by smacking him with the staff.

He lay there; dead. The cleaver was still there. Orion picked it up & put it away as proof of killing the monster.

" The spirits of the dead are now avenged...", He said softly before heading back to the fork. Mignon taunted the vanquished fiend before joining Orion. When they left, an all-too-familiar foe appeared.

_" Hm. The kid never ceases to amaze me.",_ Ninon thought. She looked at the remains of 'The Butcher', quite fascinated with their abilities.

" Well now. Lets see him deal with the poisoned water supply.", she said, holding a book that had a strange symbol of a fireball with stars surrounding a third of it embedded on the front & back of it_**.**_ _"Lets see them deal with this. I have a bigger, badder, much more devastating version of their fire bolt spell.",_ Ninon thought, warping away into the unknown.

" We need to hurry! Every hour that passes means less water for the village! Let us rush!", Orion said, rushing through the opposition with his staff & finishing them off with 2 to 3 blows. Mignon scorched the remaining few, though she took a punch to the stomach. They found a crack in the wall; there was a sound of rushing water.

After clearing out the rest of the opposition,( zombies, skeletons, & fallen one, albeit, they're were different & more stronger), they found another area filled with more books. only 8 books, but no scrolls. 3 fire bolt spell books, 3 charged bolt spell books & 2 inferno spell books! Orion couldn't help but smirk. picking them up, he looked around for anything else that looked suspicious; nothing was suspicious however, so they turned their attention towards the gateway.

when they arrived, they were greeted with nothing but enemies. Mignon only roasted the carvers & their devil kin brethren, while Orion blasted the remains with charged bolts, electrocuting them to their doom. They fought until there was only one enemy left; a goat demon. The demon scared Mignon a little, while Orion was a bit disgusted by its image. A black mace in its right hand, he rushed towards the duo. Not exactly the brightest move he made, as Orion unleashed the Inferno spell towards him. He dropped at the first blow of his arcane attack. They came to a second fork in the road, this time, it was three directions to choose from. They took the one on the left.

The encountered only 13 enemies; 6 carvers, 6 devil kin & another goat demon. Orion unleashed the charged bolt spell yet again upon them. Only 4 enemies fell. The red &/or blue imps lost 2 of each of their brethren with that attack. They ran in fear; another not so bright idea, as Mignon relied on her Chinese boxing & then crushed the rest of the opposition, save for the goat demon as he repelled & knocked her back with a swing of its mace. Mignon was cornered, but before the goat demon could deliver the blow, someone stepped in & blocked the demon with a shield & gave the goat demon a taste of his own medicine by repaying him with some serious hack & slash attack. The goat dropped after 6 attacks, dead.

" I knew I should've shown up...", The stranger said. The man had leather for armor, a bit brownish for the upper part of him, while a little more azure for the lower clothes. Wearing boots, he had his hair in a ponytail. " We can talk later. We got trouble coming towards us!", He said, readying his blade. There were 6 devil kin & 12 carvers. Before any of them had a chance to even move, the brave warrior doomed them with several hacks that pierced through them. Mignon cheered him on through his onslaught, while Orion laughed.

The recently formed trio then headed to the fork in the road. This time however they took the right. They discovered 6 devil kin, each with their staffs at the ready. Orion unleashed several charged bolts upon their adversaries, while Mignon & the stranger bested them with their physical prowess; in other words, Mignon kicked & knocked them towards the stranger who in turn finished them off with a sharp stab.

There was only 2 goat demons standing in their way. They ran off back to the fork & took the middle path. They ran past the devil kin & carvers. Mignon unleashed her fire bolt spell to its fullest, & incinerated the opposition. The trio headed towards the middle pathway & toward the river. To their amazement, it was overflowing with stagnant filth. the stench was overwhelming, making the trio drop to their knees. They got back up after getting used to the horrid unclean stench. there were only four goat demons left, three wielding maces. The fourth, a hunter's bow. No devil kin or carvers, let alone fallen ones remained.

The three wielding a mace charged towards toward the trio. Mignon let out a surprise; a hue giant fireball. She unleashed it against them. There was only one goat demon on the floor. The others were incinerated, their maces on the floor, badly burnt. The stranger ran towards the goat demon with the bow, but before he got there, he dropped his bow & surrendered.

" Pleeeease! Can't fight anymore. brothers killed by you! No pain!", he said. Everyone was a bit confused.

" Orion, what do we do about the poisoned water supply?", The stranger asked.

" I relinquish curse! disappear filth!" The goat demon said, chanting a few words. Before anyone knew it, the water was purified & returned to normal right before their eyes. They looked at the goat demon, wondering how he did that.

" Girl made us do dirty work. She put curse on us. Either death or dispel make taint go away.", It explained.

" A girl? wait... you do not mean Ninon, do you?!" Orion asked. The goat shook his head up & down, signaling for a yes.

" Why did you surrender...?", someone said. Everyone turned their attention to the direction of the voice. It came from the shadows; the assailant stepped out of darkness; it was Ninon. " You're pathetic. Goodbye.", Ninon said. She casted a spell that made a HUGE ball of explosive fire upon the goat demon. Nothing remained after that. The goat demon was blown to smithereens...

" Why?!", Mignon screamed, jumping at her sister for killing the goat demon who surrendered. She teleported before she struck her right behind Orion. He was prepared for this, however. He ducked before she attacked him & sent her flying with a swing of his staff. She teleported away. Orion sighed, thinking of what just happened. Orion turned his attention to the stranger that aided them in the recent quest.

" Who are you?", Orion asked the stranger.

" I am Mike. I came here to battle the darkness & save my hometown. I live right behind Ogden, the tavern owner. I came back after hearing about Tristram falling into great chaos. Griswold said you two were trying to clear out the labyrinth. I figured you'd need some help.", Mike explained.

" Come on. We need to get back to Tristram.", He said before reading a scroll that made an azure vortex. Walking through the portal, they returned to Tristram...

_**Alright, this is chapter 3. Again, I do not know how to repay you all for your time. Please review. Thank you for your time, once again & have a good day or night, ladies & gentlemen.**_


	4. What happened between Orion & Ninon?

_**Alright. This is the chapter that started Orion's story, right before chapter 1. But this will count as chapter 4 for several reasons. Look into the story & you'll see what I mean. Same rules apply as usual. The one implied at chapter one. I'm sorry for any convenience. Relax, read & enjoy!**_

_What happened between Orion & Ninon?_

_**11:25 P.M.**_

The town of Tristram; a somber twilit village with the grand king Leoric as its ruler. He was a great king, treating everyone quite fairly. He was the holiest of men, never losing his temper. There were competitions on who was the blacksmith or grand celebrations. Quite frankly, a very peaceful village. But that all changed when several strange 'events' occurred that whipped the whole town into a frenzied mob.

Several cloaked riders came & raided the village, trying to torment the village & others near it. Many were slain, & those who took up arms were slain or dragged away to become slaves, or even worse. The church was desecrated & used for dark spells or something else.

King Leoric's son, as well as other children, were kidnapped. A group of people were led into the church to look for the kidnappers & the children. The kidnappers didn't get all of the children, however. There was one that was too smart for them. This kid was Orion.

He, unlike others, was a sorcerer, trying to learn more about the arcane arts. He had only a few books to learn, due to a shortage of books. The spell books had strange symbols, an indication as to what might happen if casted. There was a Teleport spell, a fire bolt spell, & a charged bolt spell are the only few books he owned. He set out to find more of the spell books. No one would help him, thinking he was a madman. He decided to turn his attention elsewhere, in hopes of finding ore spell books...

He went out of the village, trying to find out where to look, when he found a strange place that overflowed with magical energies. When he set foot upon the strange area, he saw a red portal emerge from the ground. He thought what could happen if it lead to the church that was desecrated. He then saw something in the portal. It looked nothing like the church he knew when he made his visits to the church. He jumped into the crimson vortex, despite his fear, & into the unknown...

The next thing he knew, he found himself behind a huge house at night! People seemed to be coming in & out of the area with or without books. Orion deducted that it would be only one place; a library! He jogged in, hoping to find something useful.

The place was full of shelves that had so many books, the amount was almost insurmountable. The place was quite dim, due to the dark lunar sky. There were only three people here; two girls in the strangest of clothes, & what was presumably, the caretaker of the library.

He went to ask the caretaker of the book area to see where he could look for books that had any strange symbols on the front & back. Strangely enough, she pointed him in the direction of where the two girls were; right in the middle of all the rows of books. There were two gigantic statues of minotaurs that were directly placed next to the book cases; really, it didn't look to welcoming at first glance.

He walked over past the statues, took out his spell books, & tried to compare some of them to the ones he had. He made sure to keep them hidden away. There was no telling what could happen if anyone discovered them. He also looked for others that had different symbols. He searched for a while, but he found no spell books; not even a scroll. He was disappointed at this misfortune; he thought he would never learn more about spell casting.

" Are you dealing with supernatural powers?", someone said behind him. Orion slowly turned around to discover the girl he saw earlier. He was surprised to hear someone talk to him about arcane magic, let alone a small girl. Everything she wore was completely pitch-black. Her sandals, her dress, & her hair band was combined with a black rose; she also had white hair, & her scent was very nice. Her purple eyes were very pretty also, albeit. . . they were lidless, relatively speaking.

She really didn't seem to welcoming at first glance, however; her image was, quite frankly, the stuff of nightmares.

" Who are you? Are we enemies? How do you know I deal with arcane magic?", Orion asked inquisitively, thinking he was probably followed through the portal back at Tristram. She signaled for silence by putting a finger on her lips. She led him somewhere else, but not before she took her books & put them in a bag. They went somewhere very dank & even more dimmer than the location they were at earlier.

" I know you deal with magic because of the books you had. You cannot hide anything away from me, you know.", she said, a subtle grin erupting from her face. " I am Ninon Beart. You must be the sorcerer, Orion.", She said silently.

" How do you know me? Are you... a... a witch?", Orion said, feeling a little frightened at what she was. She only nodded, signaling for a yes. Orion felt weak, thinking what she could do to him. He knew that even though he was a sorcerer, an arcane spell caster, she was a witch; witches were more destructive than sorcerers, due to their combination of necromancy & arcane elements!

" Do not worry, Orion. I won't kill you. I only want to know what you know. Maybe you & I can become good friends.", She explained, trying to calm him down. She grabbed him by his arm & started to pull him.

" What is it?", Orion asked, a bit confused.

" Do you want to know more about arcane magic or not?", She said very bluntly. Orion followed her, the areas the go through getting dimmer & dimmer, when they came to a stop. Orion was starting to sweat. Orion channeled his mind & called forth fire into the palm of his hands. Ninon was nowhere to be found. She had vanished completely!

" Ninon? Where are you?", He said, walking with his magic playing the role as a torch, trying to find her. His mind was almost scattered away by what happened next. Ninon appeared right in front of him, making him jump back & take his staff out of his inventory. Ninon started to giggled a little, & that really made it worse; _it sounded scary to the extent of where it seemed sadistic! Worse, she seemed to be a little proud of her handiwork!_

"I found the books you want.", She said, trying to stop giggling. Orion really wasn't pleased about that. He put his staff away & followed her toward the location she had discovered. She had found only 11 books. One had a symbol of a fire bolt, except the symbol had a third of the fire bolt covered in stars. Another had the symbol of a shield that was partially colored. One had a man covered in stone. The fourth, a dark circle. the fifth one had chains emerging from the shadows & the final one had a ray of lightning bolts formed into a line. Orion was very happy about this discovery. Ninon took only one of each book, while Orion took the last five spell books; they now had one of each spell, save for the spell with a lightning stream symbol; that one was in the possession of Ninon.

Ninon came closer to him, a smile emerging from her face. Orion took a step back.

" You... are just my type too...", She said, making Orion blush a little. " Come on. I'll take you to my place so we can avoid any nuisances & study alone.", She added, taking him by the arm & leading him towards the counter. By this time, the other girl was gone & the library was about to close for tonight. They made the purchase, left before the clerk locked the door & went towards Ninon's home.

Orion never expected a witch to be this nice, as he was walked into her gigantic behemoth of a mansion. Orion was still on guard. He always thought he could never trust a witch, no matter how innocent they look. Ninon led him to what was presumably her room. The place was even more dim than the library they were at. The place had a few shelves that were full of spell books. The desk had two chairs & was occupied by one book, & the bed was quite elegant. There were several red candles around the area, & they started to light due to Ninon's magic. The light was not much of an improvement, but it was much better than fooling around in the dark.

" Orion. Lets begin studying.", Ninon said, taking out her books. She sat at the left seat, grabbing a quill & prepared to write, while Orion took the right. Orion was having a little difficulty with the books, but Ninon seemed to be reading these books with no effort whatsoever. Ninon noticed his issues, & started to give him a few hints at studying the spell-books.

" Orion, try to solve some of the mysteries the books hold. With them out of the way, dealing with the spell books won't be too much of a challenge.", She exclaimed. After that, all five spells were learned from the books. Orion was very pleased about this. " Orion, take this book. I have already learned the lightning spell. I think you could use it.", Ninon said politely as she handed the book over to him.

" Thank you Ninon. I really do not know how to thank you for your help.", Orion said. Ninon brushed her hair a little away from her eyes. She moved closer to Orion, & hugged him. She moved closer to his ear. Orion felt really relaxed, & very welcomed, despite his fear.

" I want your magic abilities. There are several spells that you don't know about, yet you think they're around the town you live at. I want to learn them all, & become the most powerful witch.", Ninon whispered softly to his ear. Orion's blood went cold.

" Ninon... I do not think it would be wise to pursue magic in hopes of becoming the greatest witch. A quest for power will most likely end in failure. I have a reason to learn all I can. I need to rid the evil of the town of Tristram.", Orion said.

" Come on. I really want to. I know I can learn the spells.", Ninon tried to persuade him; to no avail. Orion looked very stern & unconvinced by her persuasion; from her eyes, anyways.

" No, Ninon. The spells are too dangerous. I do not want to see you hurt.", Orion said. " There is no need to learn more. You want to learn the spells for self defense, not for slaughtering your opponents.", Orion said. Ninon started to hug him tighter. Orion teleported away to the door, but Ninon only did what he did. Ninon tackled him to the floor, & pinned him down.

" We could be friends, you know. We could become the strongest beings in existence. No one would dare mess with us. What do you say, Orion?", Ninon whispered into his ear. Orion teleported & had his staff ready.

" Do not force me to fight, Ninon.", He said. Ninon giggled. She casted a spell after chanting something in Latin. Before Orion knew it, he was bound with chains that seemed to be draining his energy. Ninon ran over, & started pummeling him with kicks & punches. After 20 seconds, the spell expired, but Orion was badly injured. He fell to the ground after being knocked into the wall.

" Isn't it tough to live, being so weak, Orion?", Ninon said. She encroached slowly, but before she could incapacitate him, Orion chanted several words, & before Ninon could evade, she was trapped in a spell binding circle. Orion unleashed a charged bolt spell upon her, then started whacking her with his staff.

Ninon was very weak after that onslaught. She was severely enraged, to the extent of where she actually thought about killing him. Her expression was a very foul scowl that could make anyone cower in fear. Orion moved in for another attack, but before Orion could strike again & end the duel, Ninon teleported behind him, & then electrocuted him with her lightning spell. He was incapacitated after 15 seconds of the lightning shock spell; he fell down to the floor.

Ninon walked up to his now-unconscious body & took away the lightning spell book he gave him.

" That was a very foolish decision, you know, refusing to help & teach me new spells.", Ninon said. " Oh well. I guess I should see if I can absorb all of your magic, & take it away from you.", She finished. Before she could do that, Orion awoke from the jarring attack, got back up & sent her flying to the wall with his staff. He teleported away, & Ninon chased him down.

She wanted his magic abilities badly, & Orion was in some serious trouble...

" I really never expected her to do that.", Mike said, awe-struck at what he just heard from what Orion sad.

" Why is Ninon so cold-hearted?", Mignon asked herself.

" She's a power-hungry fiend. That's why.", Orion answered.

They were in one of the rooms inside the inn keepers tavern. Orion decided to tell Mike & Mignon what happened from start to finish. They really weren't expecting that out of Ninon, due to the expressions on their faces; _it looked as if they were paralyzed with fear & shock._

" We should stop her & the evil within the labyrinth. Otherwise, there's no telling what could happen.", Orion concluded, picking up his stuff & heading out. The others followed, & together, the trio headed straight for the labyrinth.

_**This is chapter four. Again, I do not know how I can thank you for your time. I really appreciate your time. Review please. Thank you for your time once again, & have a good day!**_


	5. Ninon returns & King Leoric strikes back

_**Alright! This is chapter five. I do hope you are enjoying the story that unfolds as I write or type. Please enjoy the story.**_

_Ninon returns, & King Leoric strikes back_

_**Tristram, Tavern of the rising sun, evening, 6:55 P.M.**_

Orion, Mike & Mignon were just about to leave before the tavern owner, Ogden, asked for Orion's help.

" The village needs your help, good master! Some months ago, King Leoric's son, Prince Albrecht, was kidnapped.", He said. Mignon stood still, her eyes widening. Mike sat there, still drinking water, when he expelled it out of his mouth upon hearing that. " What?", was Mignon's only response.

" The king went into a rage & scoured the village for his missing child.", Ogden continued.

" So we go find Leoric's son?", Mignon answered, thinking she already knew what to do. Ogden shook his head left & right, signaling for a no.

" With each passing day, he seemed to slip deeper into madness. He sought to blame innocent people, & had them brutally executed. Less than half of us survived his insanity.", He said, starting to quiver in fear about what happened.

" So we stop the king?", Mignon asked yet again. " Will you just let him talk?!", Mike said, starting to become real irritated at Mignon's rude interruptions. " You were saying, Ogden?", Mike added.

" The king's knights & priests tried to placate him, but he turned against him, & sadly they were forced to kill him.", Ogden said a little quietly. " With his dying breath, the king called down a terrible curse upon his former followers. He vowed that they would serve him in darkness forever.", He continued. He started to rub his head. Orion & Mike thought this couldn't be true, as Leoric was never this angry. But seems to be a fact; why else would he solicit their help?

" This is where things take a darker twist than I thought possible! Our former king has risen from his sleep & now commands a legion of undead minions within the labyrinth. His body was was buried in a tomb, three levels beneath the cathedral.", he finished.

" I see what you want us to do.", Mike said. Orion nodded. Mignon's eyebrows raised a little.

" Please, good master, put his soul at ease by destroying his now cursed form.", Ogden asked before going to door. The trio made preparations to go down & rid the dark king of the town. Mike went for Griswold's shop & got his weapons ready. Orion did the same but not before doing something else. He went to where Farnham was sitting to give him the good news.

" Hello, hic, Orion! Did you... stop him?", Farnham said, as his face becoming a little sad & grim. Orion gave him the black & silver ring. Farnham simply burst into tears.

" Thank, hic, you! I don't know how I can thank you!", He said, hugging Orion real tight. After the hug, Farnham fell back down.

" He will not be bothering anyone ever again. Be careful Farnham. Take care of yourself.", Orion said. He turned his attention to the storyteller, Cain, to see about the strange staff he found in the labyrinth. When he arrived, he found mike talking to Cain.

" Hello my friend! Stay awhile & listen.", Cain greeted, noticing Orion.

" Can you help me with something I found in the labyrinth?", Orion asked. Cain took the staff & tried to identify its properties.

" This will cost 100 gold if you want me to unlock its effects.", He said. Orion handed 100 gold over to him.

" This is a Dragon's Staff of The Mind. Its power can enhance your spell casting abilities, due to the dragon's powers that enhance your energy & the Mind-like power that enhances your intellect. Quite a rare find if you have not made your way farther into the labyrinth.", Cain said, handing the powerful staff back to Orion. Orion looked at the staff like he just accomplished a job. He thanked Cain. Mike showed him an Axe. The Axe seemed to have unknown magical properties.

" I found this while I was searching for Orion in the dungeon.", He explained. Mike handed over 100 gold to Cain for his services.

" This Axe can actually turn the tide of the battle, seeing as how it's faster than a normal Axe. It's also has another effect; its very sharp. It is the Warrior's Axe of Speed.", He said, finishing his identification & handing the Axe over to Mike. " Again, a very good weapon that you wouldn't find without having to deal with several challenges.", He added.

Before they left, Orion stopped to ask one last question. " Do you know about what happened to King Leoric?", He asked.

" Ah, the story of our king is it? The fall of King Leoric was a harsh blow to this land. The people of this town always adored the king, & now they live in mortal fear of him.", Cain said. " The question I keep asking my self, is how Leoric could have fallen so far from the light, as Leoric had always been the holiest of men.", He said. " Only the vilest powers of hell could so utterly destroy a man from within.", Cain added. Orion shook his head in disbelief, as did Mike.

" Is something the matter, Mike?", Orion asked. Mike didn't answer, but simply walked back to Griswold's shop.

" I think Mike really felt bad for our king, Orion. From what I have heard from Ogden, he has risen from his earthly prison & has an army of undead soldiers. Tell him that he may need to learn a spell or two to combat the king himself.", Cain said. Orion nodded at the idea & went to join the others.

When Orion arrived at the blacksmith, he found the two talking about what happened earlier between Orion & Ninon. They were equipped & ready to take down just about anything. Mike had his sword & shield repaired, as well as a new Axe. Mignon had already learned a new spell from the witch Adria, or so Mignon said, called the holy bolt; the same one that Orion knew. She too also had a staff on her. She said the person who taught her how to fight also dealt with a staff as well & thought maybe she can learn to fight with the staff as well. Before they ventured in, Orion signaled for them to stop.

" Mignon, Mike & I need to talk alone." Orion said. Mignon walked away & waited at the church's entrance. Orion turned his attention on Mike; he was a little confused.

" Mike, you need to come with me. I have an idea you might find interesting on how we can deal with the undead king." Orion exclaimed. Mike seemed to take notice, despite the fact he didn't seem to happy. " We need to go to the witch's shack." He finished, walking towards the hovel.

_Meanwhile..._

Ninon was in the still darkness of the labyrinth, carrying a bag with 12 books inside. There were only three spells, but 4 copies of each, each more advanced than the last. They had three different symbols; one with the same symbol that was found on the book Orion & Mignon received from Adria the Witch. The second one had a symbol that was no different than the spell she used against Mignon when they were fighting in the catacombs. The final one had a symbol that resembled a ring that was rising upward in flames.

_" Lets see them deal with Leoric. If they manage to finish him off, then Orion will be fighting me next.",_She thought. She arrived at a staircase that led up to town next to the graveyard. She walked up the stairs, hardly ever making any noise at all. She arrived out of the catacombs, & into the town of Tristram.

It was midnight already, & the full moon was out; the radiance from the moon fell upon her pale face. Ninon's face erupted into a subtle grin; she seemed to be pleased about the full moon. She walked over to the cemetery with bag of books. She came across a tombstone that was huge. Ninon sensed severely great power coming from it.

_" This looks like this would come from a necromancer. Hm...",_ She pondered, thinking what was the cause of what was coming from it. _" I will deal with this matter later. Right now, I have a plan to set in motion.", _she thought, teleporting away from the town & back into the labyrinth...

_Later on..._

They headed into the labyrinth, their offense at the ready. They arrived to the third floor, only to find the strange imps they encountered at the first few levels, only that their skin was a darker blue. The only other enemies were skeletons, ones that were white, red, pale, or gray. Mike took out his Axe & started to plow through the opposition like a wild bull that just went crazy. Orion blasted away the rest of the skeletons with holy magic, & Mignon finished them off with a powerful fire bolt spell.

Mike went onward, his Axe at the ready, as did the other two when they found an area that had steel grating & a door; within it, there were several skeletons. All of them were armed with axes. Orion had an idea, but before he could share his thoughts on this matter, Mike went in & started smashing every skeleton in the room. Each skeleton went flying into the other skeletons, & Mike was finished in 10 seconds; all in all, he demolished nearly 30 skeletons! Orion stared at Mike, almost stunned by his prowess in short range combat. Mignon jumped in the air, as if she was cheering Mike on, or like she accomplished something.

When Orion went in, he found only three books; one of them had a strange symbol that looked like two monsters fighting against each other in a duel. The second was another healing spell, but the third was very... odd. The symbol had a man encased in what looked like stone. Orion took the books, save for the healing spell, & kept them in his inventory; he really wasn't sure what to make of the strange books he just found.

What else they didn't know was what was lurking in the shadows, & there was one person doing just that. She was up on the ceiling, floating; the darkness concealed her entirely & the clothes she wore only added to her concealment.

_" It doesn't matter which book you find. I have already become very powerful. You can't really contend with the plan that has been set in motion, let alone me. Even if you did beat the undead king, I will show up & take his place as your new enemy.", _She exclaimed in her mind. "_I think you would be quite exhausted after dealing with his legion of undead minions & Leoric himself.", _She thought. She watched the team from the shadows, waiting for the right time to attack.

" Hey, what is that over there?" Mike said, pointing at what appeared to be an entrance. Before any of them could investigate, several dozen pale,red, &/or gray skeletons showed up, armed with axes, bows, a sword & shield, & they surrounded the entrance. One of them seemed to stand out for the rest, one of them had a strange aura around the undead fiend. His skull appeared to be on fire, & the weapon he carried was a very strange bow that looked like it was made of magical bones; its minions looked tougher than usual. Orion concluded one thing; _they were guarding the entrance to king Leoric's tomb! Why else would they be there, other than just to kill them?_

Mike had his Axe ready, but before he could rush up toward the undead, Orion signaled for him to stop.

" I have an idea. We will contend with the distance attackers, while you deal with the short-range contenders." Orion whispered to them. Mike started to nod for a yes, & Mignon also caught up to what they were getting at.

Mignon & Orion combined their holy magic & unleashed it against most of the undead archers, crumpling into dungeon debris after 1 or 2 hits. Mike rushed onwards, & started to smite the short range Axe skeletons. Only a few of them managed to put attack him, & really, it didn't have much of an effect, save for a mere flesh wound. Mike shrugged it off & crushed the rest of the opposition with his Axe.

" I'd like to see you deal with me, troublesome fools. I am Skull-Fire! You won't be able to finish me off like you did Ninon's other minion.", The fiery skeleton exclaimed. He cocked a flaming arrow, taking aim at Mike!

Skull-Fire started to shoot arrows at mike; only three of them hit him, but they were blocked before they reached his chest. Orion started slinging holy bolts upon Skull-Fire & managed to knock him backwards, while Mignon also started slinging the holy bolt magic attack at Skull-Fire. Mike rushed towards him, & then delivered the finishing blow by smacking him real hard with the Axe, incapacitating him; he was now a pile of inanimate bones.

" I know now that this is the tomb of King Leoric.", Orion said.

" How do you know that?", Mignon asked.

" Think about it, Mignon.", Mike began," Why else would they be here, other than to just kill us?", he explained. " There has to be some reason why they were here.", He finished.

" Oh! You guys sure are smart!", Mignon cheered, when she heard Mike explain that. Mike looked at her, thinking she really wasn't all that bright. Both of them went into the tomb. Ninon followed without alerting them.

When they arrived at the tomb, they all heard a voice.

" The warmth of life has entered my tomb," It began, "Prepare yourself, mortal, to serve my master for eternity!", It finished, laughing. several skeletons showed up, armed with only swords & shields or bows. Before they could strike, Mike shattered each & everyone of them with a couple of swings of his Axe. An arrow flew by, missing Orion by inches, hitting the wall. Orion retaliated by unleashing a barrage of holy bolts all at once. They rushed on towards the right of the area which they arrived, their weapons at the ready.

They found at least several skeleton bones on the floor, & only some of them had 'composite bows'. The area which they were in had an iron grating that blocked off the way that lead to Leoric's coffin. There were two other ways to go; left or right. Each way had a door. Mike chose to go left, while Orion chose to go right. Mignon went with Orion as well.

Mike rushed towards the door on the left, & opened it. They only thing he saw was skeletons, armed only with shields & swords. Mike ran right after them, & started crushing them with his Axe. It took about two swings before each of them dropped to the floor, dead. He then found a lever. He didn't dare pull it, thinking it could be a trap. Mike rushed over to where Orion & Mignon's location.

When he got there 10 seconds later, he found nothing but bones all over the floor. _" Huh. Orion is so good with his magic, there is nothing but bones left after the struggle.",_ Mike thought in a humorous manner. Orion & Mignon came out with several weapons, such as an Axe, some armor, & 3 books; each were nothing but 'holy bolt' books!

" I think we can use these books to our advantage.", Orion said, stepping out of the chamber Mignon was in," Seeing as how were dealing with the undead.", He finished.

" Good point.", Mike said, putting his Axe away. " We need to go back to town, though. We gotta pawn some of this stuff.", Mike added, taking out a scroll of town portal. A blue portal appeared right behind Mike. The trio went through the azure portal, & appeared next to another house behind Ogden's tavern. Mike & Orion went over to Cain's to identify what they found. Its cost was 200 gold, but the Axe wasn't really much use, but the cap was another story. It was actually one of the greatest caps around; the Thinking Cap was in Orion's possession!

" Consider it this way Orion. The cap will make your spell levels stronger & its other powers allow you to tap into more spell-slinging than usual.", Cain said, obviously awe-struck at the fact they found one of the rarest caps for a spell-caster.

After making more preparations for the showdown with King Leoric, they headed into the azure vortex & appeared back at the tomb.

" Come with me, guys. I think I know how to open the iron-gratings." Mike claimed. He went to the door on the left of the main room as did the other two. There, they spotted the lever, still untouched. Mike pulled it to the left, & when they came out of the room, they found the gratings down. The passage was now open. But before they could move, already, there were several skeletons coming after them! At least nearly 50 of them were on sight & they were armed with nothing but swords & shields. Mike rushed right up close & started smashing each of them with his Axe. Orion & Mignon also joined him in the melee. Orion & Mignon unleashed their staffs upon the skeletons & bested all of the skeletons.

There was only one skeleton left; but it was a gargantuan skeleton, armed with a huge sword! He was wearing a crown & armor that looked really thick. Mike rushed towards the king, & so did the skeleton king in turn. He unleashed a heavy blow towards the king with the huge Axe & made sure not to give him a chance to attack. He retaliated by knocking him into the wall. He fell unconscious after that sudden attack. Orion & Mignon made sure to keep their distance & unleashed several holy bolts toward the king. He evaded them with ease; only three managed to get him. Before he could land the killing blow upon the two, He was blasted with a holy bolt spell!

" I guess it is a good thing you took me to the witch's shack & let me have two books of the holy bolt spell. Even more so on letting me borrow 'The Thinking Cap'.", Mike said, walking up towards the king, who was face down. He got up & charged towards Mike, which by this time he was ready for his onslaught; he unleashed one more holy bolt spell upon him; after it struck him, he smashed the undead king with his Axe. Leoric crumbled down into pieces.

" Well done, everyone. You should thank Orion though, due to the fact he came up with the idea.", Someone said. All three of them turned their attention towards the passage way they came through; there was Ninon, standing there with a creepy smile on her face.

" Ninon! Of all the times to show up, why did you show up now?!", Mike shouted, very angry at the sight of Ninon's presence. Ninon's only response was a simple spell sling , & Mike, along with Mignon, were bound with dozens of chains!

" If you want them to be free again, you must beat me in a duel.", Ninon said, her smile twisting into a dark frown, her eyes becoming very wide. " I hope you won't let me burn though.", She said, chanting several words in Latin. After 10 seconds, there was a huge ring of fire surrounding the two opposing sides. Ninon began the battle by jumping at Orion, which he teleported away to avoid the tackle. He unleashed several holy bolts upon her; the onslaught of holy magic was almost too much for her to bear, so she teleported out of the way. She unleashed a powerful spell that shot a fireball at Orion. He was hit by it, then knocked back hard. The explosion was even worse. The explosion made him writhe in pain as he fell to the ground. Ninon approached him, a demented crazy look on her face was slowly erupting; Orion was starting to think it was all over for him.

That is, until it occurred to him: What about the partial potions he bought? He searched his inventory, & sure enough, there they were; six partial healing potions. He couldn't Believe that he had forgotten them just like that. He took 2 of them & drank both of them. He felt somewhat better, but not great. Orion got up, rushed towards her, then unleashed his staff upon her. Ninon took several hits before teleporting away. He wasn't done there, Orion Unleashed a final barrage of holy bolts upon Ninon. She finally couldn't take anymore; she dropped to the floor coughing.

The ring of fire slowly died down as the chains that prevented Mike or Mignon from moving, weakened; they both dropped to the floor on their feet. Mike went over towards Ninon, with his Axe at the ready, when Ninon unleashed the fire bolt spell upon Mike; she destroyed the Axe, & Mike took a heavy hit. Mignon unleashed another holy bolt at Ninon, & made her drop to the floor face down.

" Orion, please stop resisting. I really do like you.", Ninon claimed, making Orion blush. She was trying the love trick again, like she did in the past. Orion looked at her; he was becoming more enraged for every passing moment.

" I have just had about enough of your cheap tricks, Ninon!" Orion shouted, preparing to blast her with one more holy bolt; she smiled as he was about to fire what would spell the end for her. The smile abruptly turned into a dark frown of absolute hatred.

" I won't go away that easily, fool. Goodbye...", Ninon said, vanishing away into the shadows. Orion handed each of them two of the 4 remaining healing potions.

" Ninon is a total lunatic, & really she won't get away with this.", Mike said angrily. He was looking at the Axe he once had; it was damaged beyond repair. He dropped the Axe & took another town portal scroll out. He read it aloud & the blue vortex was behind Mike. Orion & Mignon went first.

Before Mike left, he turned to look at the remains of King Leoric. He felt really bad for the King. The King was in pieces, some of his bones scattered all over the place. His crown was the only thing that wasn't destroyed. His armor, along with that gigantic sword of his were destroyed by his axe. He took the crown from King Leoric, moving it upward, & off of his skull.

" Rest well Leoric. I'll find your son.", Mike said softly as he walked away into the blue vortex...

_**This is the end of chapter 5. I do hope you enjoyed this chapter. This was the chapter of action & tragedy. Have a good day, ladies & gentlemen.**_


	6. Ninon makes amends & the magic rock

_**Alright! This is the sixth chapter! I do hope you're enjoying the fruit of my labors. So... relax, read & enjoy.**_

_Ninon makes amends, & the Magic Rock_

_**Tristram, 1:15 A.M**_

When the weary trio returned to the town of Tristram, they went straight to the inn, & told Ogden the good news. Ogden was happy to hear the news, but he seemed somewhat pessimistic about the ordeal.

" The curse of our king has passed, but I fear that it was only part of a greater evil at work. Our townsfolk may yet survive, for your victory is a good omen. May light guide you on your way, good master.", Ogden said quietly. Orion felt the same way that Ogden did, as did Mike & Mignon. The trio went to their rooms & went to bed, but not before making preparations for their next trip to the labyrinth.

Orion went to the witch Adria to identify the books he had in his possession, & see if he could find more books from her. Adria was outside when he arrived; she seemed to be dealing with the pot that was near her hut. She noticed Orion, & turned to him; she noticed , by sensing its magical properties, that he had several books in his inventory; she knew what he was here for.

" I know what you want, Orion. You wish to know what those books can do, don't you?", Adria said. Orion nodded in agreement, showing her the books he had come across during his last trip into the labyrinth. She took the one with the symbol that had two creatures dueling against one another.

" This one is the 'Berserk' spell. With that spell, you can make enemies think that they're up to no good; they are enticed to attack their own friends, but you are still their enemy. So don't think they're going to fight for your cause.", Adria explained. She returned the book that Orion had let her identify back.

They had no idea what was going on right next to the blacksmiths shop, but maybe they should have; while they were dealing with the spell identification, there was an all-too-familiar enemy in the midst. She was standing at another bridge that was next to the blacksmiths shop. The bridge she was standing at led to an orchard, but the bridge was blocked however, due to a horrid creature swelling out of the ground. Ninon was there investigating it, trying to find out how it got here, & what she should do.

_" This is very strange. I do not remember this disgusting thing being here at Tristram. I wonder if this was created by the person who created the strange necromantic tomb.", _Ninon thought. _"I can't enter the crypt, due to the magical energies that block any teleportation spells. I should traverse the hive.", _She advocated. _" But I should be careful. I need to avoid walking into a trap that can only lead to my demise.", _she thought_. _She sensed what was in there, & whatever it was, it was obviously not friendly.

_" I should wait for my 'guests' to do my dirty work though. I'm sure that they would like to do nothing more than stop any evil that comes around Tristram."_, She thought. _"This thing could starve the cows if he cannot get to his orchard. I imagine he wouldn't let his cows die, & I bet that he would get someone to help him. It would have to be them."_, She advocated, taking a look at Orion, making sure not to get caught; she left after a few seconds with a subtle grin erupting from her face. She felt then felt a little sad. For some reason, she didn't know. She took another look at Orion; she realized what she felt. She actually felt remorse for once. She teleported away, making sure not to make too much noise.

When Orion left, he remembered that he had learned the stone curse spell already on his first encounter with Ninon. He really wasn't much with that spell, due to its high mana cost; he refrained from using the spell most of the time, unless it was really necessary. The berserk spell could be useful when facing overwhelming packs of monsters. The third book was with Mignon now. Her healing abilities are much better than they were before.

Mike was heading out from the blacksmith shop, after hearing about a story & unloading the stuff they had found. Right now, they had 6250 gold. That was due to the stuff they found in king leoric's tomb. He thought of the story & wanted to tell Orion about it. He found Orion with the healer, Pepin. When Orion was finished, he walked over to Mike, who asked him to come along.

" You're not going to believe what I just heard from Griswold. But first, lets go get Mignon, & then I'll tell you both the story.", Mike exclaimed as they jogging towards the inn. There, right at one of the rooms, she was reading the spell book she found in the labyrinth on the third floor.

" What is it, Mike?", Mignon asked.

" Griswold told me a story that he thinks we may find interesting.", Mike began. " A caravan that was bound for the eastern kingdoms past through here some time ago.", Mike continued. " It was supposedly carrying a piece of the heavens that had fallen to earth!", Mike exclaimed. Orion & Mignon looked at each other & then back to mike, completely awe-struck at what Mike said.

" Before the caravan could reach the eastern kingdoms, it was ambushed by cloaked riders. Griswold told me that he searched the wreckage for this sky rock, but it was nowhere to be found. If we can bring him the sky rock, he believes he can fashion something useful from it.", he claimed. Orion thought of an idea.

" Perhaps we can find it at the the labyrinth. Maybe one of those foul creatures have it.", Orion said as he stared out the window.

" Alright, everyone. I got more good news. I have added 6250 gold to the 900 gold we have already. That raises it up to a total of 7150 gold.", Mike added. Mignon jumped up & down like a happy child that got a wish. Orion smirked as he walked over to his stuff, & started sorting it out.

" & the good news keeps on coming.", Mike said. " I know that Orion needs to learn more magic, so... I used 2000 gold to buy him a spell book!", Mike said, handing over a book to Orion. The book had a symbol of a flame that moved forward, getting larger, & possibly stronger, with each passing moment.

" Thank you, Mike.", Orion said as a big grin emerged from his face.

" No problem. OK, now lets go to bed. We have a lot of work to do tomorrow.", Mike said as he left Orion's room & headed for his own.

" Mignon is going to bed, Orion!", Mignon said as she yawned; she left for her room. Orion went outside for a word with Pepin & Adria before going to bed. He also brought along 1000 gold. " I need to be prepared for the labyrinth. Ninon would have killed me, if I did not remember about the few partial healing potions I had purchased from Pepin.", Orion thought, fearing for his life. He made it to Pepin's home, &knocked on the door, hoping to see if he was around the house. Sure enough, he was still there.

" What ails you my friend?", Pepin asked as he walked up towards Orion.

" Thoughts of being nearly killed by what lurks in the labyrinth. But that's not what I came here for.", Orion said, still thinking about what happened. " I want to buy something from you, & the items I want are 4 partial healing potions.", Orion said, handing over 200 gold. Pepin gave him 4 of the small bottles that contained the healing red liquid.

" Wait... I need to buy some for the others.", Orion said. Pepin shook his head. " Mignon & Mike already bought their supplies. So, do not worry about them.", Pepin said. Orion nodded upon hearing that.

" If you need something that can really help you, try this. It's a different kind of medicine that can help you with just more than one problem." Pepin said, handing over a bottle with yellow liquid. Orion thanked Pepin, but not before giving him 120 more gold to pay him for the medicine. He made his next stop at the shack that Adria inhabited.

When he got to the shack, Adria was already out, dealing with the cauldron. " You need some assistance, do you not?", Adria said, turning around to see Orion. Right now, she had small bottles containing azure liquid on her belt.

" Indeed I do, Adria. May I please buy four of the small bottles that contained the azure liquid?", Orion asked. He handed over 200 gold, while Adria handed over four of the bottles that contained the magic liquid. Before he left, he asked her if she knew about the magic rock that fell from the heavens.

" Griswold should be the one to use that sky rock & forge whatever he has planned, & if it were any but Griswold who would use it, I would prevent it. The monsters do have the sky rock, but they left it hidden away within the labyrinth.", Adria responded upon hearing that question. Orion thanked her for the information, & walked towards the inn.

When he arrived at the inn, he went straight for his room. When he returned to his room however, things are not as they once were. The book Mike bought for him was missing. He checked the desk first, but it wasn't there, nor was it in his inventory; thats when he noticed a shadow next to his. But it looked different from his, & there was a very strange scent in his room. He then got the feeling that someone, or some_thing_ was in his room.

He turned around, & right behind him... stood Ninon! She was holding the book that he couldn't find! Orion attempted to pick up his staff, but before he could, Ninon teleported, grabbed the staff & flung it aside. She cornered him before he could get out of the way. He was backed into a corner; once again, he was trapped!

Ninon started to smile, as she looked around him & then behind her. She then turned her attention to Orion. She looked different however.

" Do you want your book?", She asked. Her eyes narrowed a little, but she was still smiling. Orion nodded, staring right at Ninon, as if he expected her to inflict serious damage, or worse, kill him.

" Well then... say please.", Ninon said. Orion struggled to do it. It took him nearly 25 seconds to do so.

" Please... may I have my book back?", Orion asked unwillingly, as a frown formed right on his face.

" Good. Now... give me a hug.", she demanded. Orion stared at her like with an angry look. Ninon kept on smiling. " What?", was Orion's only response.

" Fine then. How about I just torture you, then you can have the book?", She replied, her smile turning into a frown that looked like as if it came from a demented monster. Orion gave her a hug upon seeing that look on her face.

_" Sadistic monster. That was uncalled for...",_ Orion thought as he hugged Ninon.

" Thank you. Now you can have your book.", Ninon replied, handing the book back to him. Orion just stood there, holding the book. He couldn't believe Ninon's little game that revolves around him taking commands like a dog to its owner; he felt enraged, but before he could unleash a spell, let alone attack, she teleported behind him. She whispered the same tune in his ear with the same unknown language. Orion was feeling even more drowsy than the last time she pulled this trick off at the catacombs that was near the village he found. She stopped singing after making Orion fall, quite literally, on his knees.

" I am sorry. I really am.", Ninon said, picking him up & laying him on the bed. " If you're wondering why I have the sudden change of heart, it's because of what I felt when I retreated from our last battle.", she explained. " Please, forgive me.", Ninon said before she started tucking him in. Before Orion knew it, he fell fast asleep. Ninon left by teleportation, but not before unlocking the door. It's almost as if she felt total karma.

_8 hours later, at 9:15..._

" Orion, wake up!", Someone said. Orion got up, but before he opened the door, his thoughts wondered on what happened. Did that really happen last night? Did Ninon actually stop her evil plans? Or is she messing around?

He opened the door to find Mignon. " Hey, have you seen the sign that Ogden has?", Mignon asked.

" The sign to the inn that Ogden owns? It should be where it has always been.", Orion said, already prepared to go in no more than a minute. He walked out the door, expecting to see the sign that had the image of the rising sun. What he saw, however, was only the remains of the pole that held the sign!

" I think I know who did it already. It must have been either Ninon, or the monstrosities within the labyrinth.", Orion concluded.

" Mignon knows! Lets catch up with Mike, He is already near the labyrinth.", Mignon claimed. The two ran straight for the labyrinth, already catching up to Mike at the entrance.

" We know who did it, Mike! lets go to the fourth floor.", Orion said. With the three back together, they went into the labyrinth. It took them a few minutes to get to the third floor, but they managed to get there without interference. They managed to get to the third floor, which by this time, there weren't too many enemies. Orion blasted them with fireboat spells & ran though the dark corridors.

They found the fourth staircase which wasn't guarded for some odd reason. There was not even one skeleton! Before they went down the steps, they saw another door. Mignon already opened it, only to find several skeletons; before any of them could react, Mignon just started showering them with holy bolts. There was only 2 books this time. The spells that were imbued in them was the fire bolt spell, & a healing spell. There was only 3 scrolls, which Mike took, while Mignon took healing spell; the last book was taken by Orion; with that, they headed off into the fourth floor of the deep-seated darkness.

When they arrived, they found nothing but enemies upon enemies. There were devil kins & dark ones, yellow & black zombies, & only gray skeletons. There were even goat demons to contend with! To make matters worse, there were at least a dozen of each enemy around. Fortunately, they were behind bars; even more worse, there wasn't any other way around this! To top it all off, one of the goat demons opened the door! They started pouring in to the room, like water into a container.

" Mike! You take the goat demons. Mignon, subdue the skeletons. As for me, I will deal with the zombies.", Orion advocated to the others.

Mike drew his sword & shield, running toward the goat demons. Only a few of them could land a hit on him with their maces. Mike only shrugged most of the hits off, & responded to them with several hacks with his sword. Most of them couldn't even stand toe-to-toe with him. Mike reigned victorious over the goat demons.

Mignon used a combination of her Chinese boxing, the staff, & magic against the skeletons; most of them couldn't take anymore than two to three hits before falling to pieces, & only one managed to attack her. Mignon defeated the skeletons, one by one, & they were helpless to stop her.

The zombies were no match for Orion's full power when it came to battering the undead with holy bolts. The only thing that remained of the zombies were heaps of stationary zombies. Orion picked up the gold they dropped, & went towards the seemingly empty room.

What they found in the room was nothing other than a small demon that resembled the dark fallen ones, save for the fact he wielded a fierce spear. Behind him were several dozen dark ones. They had dark blue skin, each of them wielded either swords & shields, or spears.

" Hey! You that one that kill all! You get me magic banner or we attack! You no leave with life! You kill big uglies & give back magic. Go past corner & door. Find uglies. You give, you go!", the demon threatened. Orion looked at the demon. " Who are you?", he asked.

" I'm Snotspill, leader of fallen ones!", Snotspill said. Mignon just started laughing. Mike smirked, & Orion continued to stare at him like he was just plain crazy. He really questioned his language, as it was obviously not good at all. Thats when another small demon came running towards Snotspill.

" Boss! Someone else came & took Magic banner! It was not big uglies! It was girl. Girl in black! She kill big uglies & vanished!", the small monster said. The trio's eyebrows raised a little. They already had a thought on who did it.

" What?! I bet that one who kill all did it. What about girl that commanded others? I think she did it! Everyone, kill thieves!", Snotspill said. The iron bars that blocked the huge group of dark ones lowered & then, they rushed toward them, their weapons at the ready.

Mike already started slashing at them, & already finished off 3 of them. Most of them ran, but a few of them started smacking him with their weapons. Mignon started roasting them with the fire bolt spell. She then rushed in & joined them in the fray. Orion only smacked most of them with his staff, & unleashed the fire bolt spell upon the remaining few enemies.

Snotspill was the only monster remaining, & he didn't look too happy. Before he could seize the initiative, Orion though of a spell that could stop him. He chanted the necessary words for about 15 seconds. In that amount of time, he was completely turned to stone! Mike & Mignon stared at the statue, & then back at Orion.

" Everyone, attack!", Orion said. All three of them rushed in, & started hitting the petrified monster, & in 10 seconds, he was now a pile of rubble.

" How did you do that?", Mignon asked.

" It was the spell book I found when I was with Ninon, & the spell book we found here in the labyrinth.", Orion explained. " It is called... stone curse. Its very handy against tough foes, but its very exhausting.", Orion said. They both noticed he was sweating.

" Now, lets find the magic rock. It has to be around here somewhere.", Mike said. They walked out the entrance that led into Snotspill's lair, & around the corner of the area. They found huge corpses, & another entrance. Past the corpses was a open treasure chest. There was no magic rock in it. There wasn't Ogden's sign either. It appeared that someone was here, & they took the sign. But why, & who did it?

" Lets head back to town. We have to tell Ogden the bad news.", Mike said as he took a scroll out of his belt. He read the words written in the scroll, & created the azure portal. They headed back to town, in no more than a few seconds.

When they got to town, they found Ogden's sign on the ground next to the vortex that lead back to town. They were confused to no end, but they found something that gave Orion & Mignon a hint of who put it there; it had a scent of incense. They looked at each other, but before they could say anything, Orion felt a tap on his shoulder.

" Orion! Behind you!", Mike shouted, drawing his sword. Mignon prepared her staff. Orion turned around to see Ninon with a subtle smile.

" You need that sign, don't you?", Ninon said.

" Yes, but where did you get that?", Mignon said.

" Mignon, it was me who took the sign. I killed those foul monsters, so you could return the sign to Ogden. You're welcome by the way.", Ninon jeered at Mignon for not realizing that she was responsible for the corpses of red demons in the room.

" Why are you being helpful?", Mike asked, his weapon still readied.

" She felt remorse.", Orion answered. Mike was more confused than before now, but he put his sword away. Mignon was even more confused than Mike. She planned to keep an eye on Ninon.

" We should return this to Ogden.", Ninon added.

" Uh... alright. Lets go.", Orion said, feeling even more cautious about her than before.

They arrived in a few minutes, & went to the tavern. Ogden was next to the doorway. He had a look of confusion erupting from his face, due to the fact that his sign was missing.

" Hey Ogden. We found your sign!", Mignon said.

" Oh, you didn't have to bring back my sign, but I suppose that it does save me the expense of having another one made. Lets see. What could I give you as a fee for finding it? Hmm, what have we here? Ah, yes! This cap was left in one of the rooms by a magician who stayed here some time ago. Perhaps it may be of some use to you.", Ogden said, handing over a golden cap with three gems embedded nearly at the top of the cap.

They thanked him, then traveled back to the labyrinth to check for the magic rock.

When they arrived, they noticed a goat demon that had red skin & fur. Mike rushed up to him, but before he could finish him, He groveled & pleads for his life.

" Pleeeease! No hurt, no kill. Keep alive, & next time, good bring to you.", he whined.

" Who are you?", Ninon said.

" I am Gharbad.", he said, still groveling.

" Alright. We will spare you. But you better not be up to anything.", Mike threatened.

" Something for you I am making.", Gharbad said, handing over a shield. Mike picked it up. " Again, not kill Gharbad. Live & give good. You take this as proof I keep word.", he said.

" Alright. Thank you.", Mike said. They then turned their attention around the dank, yet cold room; they searched around the chests, & other rooms, but after searching through the whole floor, they didn't find anything, save for 4 books that had only four separate symbols. One of them had a spell that had a vortex. The second had a wall of lightning. The third was the same as the one Orion already had, so it was no doubt the same spell. The fourth one had a holy cross with a flame coming from it; it was the holy bolt spell.

Gharbad was almost done with his project when they team came around after searching for the magic rock. " Is it done?", Mike asked.

" Nothing yet! Almost done. Very powerful, very strong. Live! Live! No pain, & promise I keep.", Gharbad promised, starting to cry a little.

" Lets take one last look. Lets search the body of Snotspill.", Mike said. Mignon started laughing again. Ninon started to giggle a little. " I know. For a guy who is a leader of the band of fallen ones, he sure sounds weak, doesn't he?", Mike said. Now everyone started laughing.

They searched for the room that Snotspill's corpse was in, & when they finally found his corpse, the only thing on him was his spear. This was a huge disappointment to them; their hopes of finding the magic rock was dwindling fast. If they didn't find it, their chances against the encroaching darkness would be next to impossible. They returned to Gharbad, who was acting stranger than usual.

" It it done now?", Mignon asked the goat demon.

" This too good for you. Very powerful. You want, you take!", Gharbad responded. He proceeded to attack him with his mace. He managed to strike Orion in the arm & knock him to the floor. Ninon responded with the 'Shadow spell'. He was surrounded by dozens of chains. She then unleashed a lightning bolt spell upon him; he was dead after ten seconds of the lightning spell.

" I am not impressed.", Ninon said, her lips forming a frown of dissatisfaction. Orion got back up, feeling a little numb after getting attacked like that. Mike took out another scroll, & created the azure vortex again. All four of them went through, & returned to Tristram. They went to the story teller Cain, & had the cap they received from Ogden identified at the cost of a hundred gold.

" This is the harlequin crest. It really isn't much for defense, but it is a vital & magical bolstering cap. It is mediocre at best.", Cain said, handing the cap back to them.

They got their supplies restocked & headed for the inn. Already, it was nearly midnight. Mike went to his so he could go to bed. Orion, Mignon & Ninon went to his room, & started studying the books they had found. It took nearly 45 minutes before each of them were learned. Orion had learned the spell with the vortex as the symbol. He had also learned the spell imbued within the book that had a flame that was growing larger & intense, & improved it with the second book. Mignon had the holy bolt spell improved. Ninon had learned the spell out of the book that had the wall of lightning symbol imbued in it.

" Good night everyone.", Mignon said, walking out the door & out of Orion's room. Ninon was the next to leave, but before she did, she looked at Orion

" What is it?", Orion said.

" I'm sorry about this.", Ninon answered. It was obvious to Orion that she felt remorse.

" It is alright.", Orion responded. Ninon left the room & closed the door behind her.

Orion unpacked his stuff, put it away, & got ready for bed. His fears of dealing with the dark monsters that inhabit the labyrinth were growing; he had someone to help them out, but would it be enough? Orion fell asleep while he was thinking about the labyrinth, & what was going to happen if he didn't stop whoever was lurking down there.

_**This is the sixth chapter, everyone. I hope you enjoyed this chapter . I will be back with more chapters, even better than the last. Until then... have a nice day, ladies & gentlemen.**_


	7. The magic rock & Arkaine's valor

_**The seventh chapter is at hand everyone! I do hope you're enjoying the story as it unfolds. Please... relax, read & enjoy.**_

_The Magic Rock, & Arkaine's Valor_

_**Tristram, 7:15 A.M**_

Orion awoke the next morning, feeling refreshed after dealing with Snotspill & the rest of his servants at the fourth floor of the labyrinthine dungeon.

As he got ready, he began to realize he is going to need more than just spells. He remembered the attack Gharbad inflicted upon him. What if someone or some_thing _were to do something more sinister? What about Mike? What about the Beart sisters? What about the town of Tristram & its inhabitants? He would be in for the fight of his life if he wanted to be victorious, let alone get out of there alive, & save Tristram.

" _I need to be careful. Maybe I could find a way out of this mess if I were to find something that could devastate those foul demons.", _Orion thought. Promptly, he got himself ready for his next trip to the labyrinthine dungeon; he went out of his room, & went downstairs, looking for Mike.

" _Perhaps he could give me a tip on defense if the monstrosities were to close the distance.",_Orion thought. He didn't find Mike in the tavern, but at the blacksmiths shop. He was bargaining for a new Axe. Orion went straight for him, hoping to get some answers.

" Well, how about this one?", Griswold, the blacksmith, said. Mike was looking at an axe. It seemed very durable & deadly at first glance. Then he looked at something else. He bought the axe after handing over 220 gold. Mike took notice of Orion's presence.

" Hey Orion. Did you want something from here?", Mike asked as he put the axe he bought away.

" Actually, yes. I also need a few tips on defense. I need to be better protected if I want to stay alive.", Orion responded. Mike pointed at the armor that Griswold had for sale; the only thing he had was studded leather & a buckler. They really didn't look like it could defend against much, at all.

The studded leather was completely pitch-black, save for the studs; they were white. It looked a little tough to destroy, however. The buckler was small, & it really didn't look like it could last long against an attack before it started to deteriorate. He really didn't have much of a choice, because everything else Griswold had were just bows, swords, or something he couldn't use, yet. Orion decided to buy them, despite their questionable defense. Handing over 800 gold, he purchased the armor, & went back to the tavern of the rising sun.

When he arrived, he went straight for his room; when he took of the rags he wore, he dressed up in the black leather; they felt soft inside, yet when he felt the outer part of it, they were hard as rock! At least from touching it. He donned the buckler, despite knowing its limitations, tied up the loose ends of the armor, & now, he was completely clad in defense. He just wished he had something that he could use for a weapon, as the staff he had was too heavy to use with a shield; he walked out of his room as he closed the door behind him. Ninon was in the lobby, while Mike was with Mignon at Griswolds, talking to him about what happened when he was out in the labyrinth, or at least thats what Ninon said they were doing.

" You know, there is the matter of the magic rock we have not dealt with. If Snotspill doesn't have it, then who does?", Ninon said.

" I imagine it would be at the fifth floor. We saw no magic rock when we were at the first four floors of that godless abattoir.", Orion claimed.

" Whats with the studded leather?," She began ," Wait... You're wearing it for better protection, Aren't you?", she said. Orion nodded.

" It was when I was attacked by that beast-warrior, Gharbad. He landed a blow on my arm.", Orion explained. He took a seat across from Ninon. " Would you like it if I were to buy one for you?", he offered. He realized she was wearing one already, save for the fact that the studs were black, & it seemed to be the type made for females. Orion thought she looked prettier with that on, though he didn't say it; he knew that she could sense his thoughts, & the subtle smile that she formed was proof of it. He felt scared of her, due to what happened when he made his first visit to her home.

" Hey, if you want... we can read a few books I found when I was out in the labyrinth.", she offered. Orion was a little shocked, hearing what Ninon just said. He hesitated at first, but responded.

" Alright. I do not see why not. Besides, I could use some reading.", he finished, his eyes filled with fear. Mike & Mignon returned from their talk with Griswold after 10 minutes.

" Ready, you two?", Mike said. The two nodded as they rose from their chairs. The team exited the tavern & followed the pathway that led to the desecrated church; they returned to the labyrinth, their weapons at the ready.

Mike was the one who went first, followed by Mignon, then finally, Orion & Ninon. They went through the rooms, past the corpses, & down the stairs; they didn't find the magic rock on the first floor, nor on the second, nor the third, or the fourth floor.

" My suspicions are confirmed. We must traverse the fifth floor in hopes of finding this magic rock. Be careful; I have a sneaking suspicion that it will not be easy.", Orion said, looking at the lair of Snotspill. They were already on the fourth floor, having found nothing but 400 gold. They had found a room that was, quite literally, flowing with gold. You couldn't take a step in the room without stepping on gold. There was nothing more than that to be gained from the fourth floor.

They arrived at the stairwell that led to the fifth floor. Orion & Mike started to sweat a little; Mignon started to shiver, & Ninon had a look of displeasure. They knew that something was down there. What choice did they have? They descended into the fifth floor, their fears whipping them into a frenzied mob. They had their weapons at the ready, almost to edgy to think.

When they arrived, the first thing they noticed was their surroundings; they were in the catacombs, a place where they keep their dead. The skeletons that lie at their resting places were starting to move; they rose from their resting places, their weapons drawn. At least 3 dozen were out in force, ready to tear them apart, piece by piece. 12 of them had composite bows, while another twelve had small one-handed axes; the remaining twelve had shields that had symbols of skulls & the swords were of the claymore type. Mike charged the ones wielding small axes, while Mignon dealt with the captains; Ninon & Orion, dealt with the archers.

Mike smashed & crashed through the axe wielding skeletons with his axe & finished most of them with one swing, though he took a few hits in the back. He finished them off, & was victorious.

Ninon & Orion had virtually no trouble at all; the archers were showered with nothing but magic. Ninon unleashed several fire bolts, while Orion unleashed several holy bolt spells against the undead. They unleashed a few arrows, but they were evaded with chilling ease. The dark witch, Ninon, & the sorcerer, Orion, reigned victorious over the horror archers while they trembled before their combined magic.

Mignon first started blasting them with holy magic, then unleashed a bolt of fire against the remaining few skeletons; they were finished before they could even close the distance.

" Well now, that wasn't much of a challenge. I wonder if they have any skill at all.", Mike boasted. Mignon jumped up down, obviously happy with her work. Orion & Ninon smirked. The only thing that they dropped were 4 books, & they were nothing more than holy bolt books; each of them took one book, when they noticed something out of the ordinary. There was a shadow that was moving where light should be. Orion looked at Ninon, who was looking straight ahead. The shadow moved towards Mignon, who wasn't paying attention.

" Mignon look out!", Orion said, but it was too late. Mignon was knocked against the walls. " Everyone, stay on guard. Don't let whatever it is come anywhere near you.", Ninon said. They heard a chilling laugh; thats what made Orion feel really scared. What could he do against that? Thats when it revealed itself; it was a golden skeleton, wielding a vicious sword & a scary shield.

" Foolish imbeciles. Its apparent that you never dealt with one that dwells in the shadows.", it spoke.

" Who are you?", Mike asked.

" How did you do that?", Mignon added.

The skeleton stood still. He looked at Mignon, & then at Mike. Then he looked at Ninon, & finally , at Orion. " For Mignon's stupid question...", it began, looking at Mignon ," I was granted this power when I was spawned from the endless abyss.", it said. He then turned his attention to Mike, who had his axe ready. " As for the mindless brawler's question... I am known as 'Shadow drinker', leader of the pack of skeletons you just demolished!", Shadow drinker screeched.

He vanished into the darkness & reappeared behind Mignon; she started showing the shadowy skeleton with holy bolts. The skeleton writhed in pain, while Mike sneaked around & started dealing heavy blows toward Shadow Drinker. The skeleton retaliated by vanishing away into the shadows, & this time coming behind Mike, & dealing several powerful blows with his sword. He was cut on the back & on the shoulders & knocked to the floor, incapacitated.

Mignon continued to unleash fire or holy bolts upon the undead being, only to have a sharp blow to the stomach. She was knocked to the floor a second time, & ended the fight by stabbing her in the arm.

Orion unleashed several holy bolt spells upon Shadow Drinker, & managed to stall him before Ninon managed to unleash a fireball spell. He barely managed to get up after that attack, but nevertheless, he charged Orion. He tried to land a blow, but Orion blocked it with his shield. Orion , having enough of this dangerous entity, unleashed the stone curse spell upon him; he was completely immobilized, having been turned into stone. Orion unleashed four more holy bolt spells before the stone-clad being was shattered to pieces. The only thing that remained was Shadow drinker's equipment, plus a dagger that was oddly shaped. Orion picked up the skeleton's equipment & the dagger; then he turned his attention to his incapacitated friends. He wondered about what he should do, when it occurred to him that he could take them back to town.

He took out a town portal scroll, & returned them to town. He dropped them off at Pepin's home, asking him to take care of them for now. He went back to the dungeon, & started to search for the magic rock. Ninon was right behind Orion, with Orion's staff in hand, ready to start fighting.

They found nothing but a room that had two demons that had horns on top of their heads occupying it; they charged the two, but they barely missed by inches. Ninon retaliated by unleashing several lightning spells towards them. They fell to the floor, dead. Orion was in shock; he barely avoided the attack, had he not been quick to act.

Orion, having calmed down a little, walked around the room they were in. They spotted a book on a stand. Ninon opened the book, & started to read aloud.

" ... And so, lock beyond the gateway of blood, & past the hall of fire, valor awaits for the hero of light to awaken...", she read; both of them were confused, when they noticed a door beyond the book they found. There was a pedestal made of obsidian stone. Next to it was a a blood red stone. Orion picked up the stone, & looked at the pedestal. There appeared to be sockets in the pedestal itself. Orion put in the blood stone, & the pedestal started to fill with blood. They heard noises, possibly from another room, to the left of the pedestal; they went over to investigate, still on guard. Orion thought about the legend of great armor; he knew that they were at the vault where the legendary hero, Arkaine, hid his armor away just before he died.

They found two more of those horned demons; they took no notice of them until Orion & Ninon started slinging spells at them. They were either pelted with fire bolts, or lightning bolts. Either way, they were felled after three to four hits. The two took notice of a second blood stone. They returned to the pedestal, & placed it in one of the sockets. The blood level seemed to rise even higher, & there was the same noise. This time however, it was coming from the right.

They rushed over to the place where they heard the noise. They found two more horned demons in the room. Ninon unleashed several fire balls towards them, incinerating them in the process. They found a third blood stone.

They prepared themselves for the worst, as they arrived at the pedestal. They put the third blood stone into the third socket, & the pedestal was now full of blood. The walls that were in front of th pedestal of blood vanished. & before they could even move, eight horned demons came charging down the hallway in a very fast manner. Ninon & Orion unleashed lightning bolts & several bursts of inferno towards them; only one remained, but it was obliterated by another burst of inferno. They went down the hallway, still on guard; there they found a ring mail that was overflowing with arcane energy. Orion picked up the armor, & put it away in his inventory.

" _May the spirit of Arkaine protect me...",_ Orion thought as he walked out of the room. He casted the town portal spell, & went back to Tristram to see if they were alright.

Mignon & Mike were still at Pepin's, but they were back to fighting form. They were waiting for him to come back so that way, they can find the magic rock. Before they left, Orion went to seek the story teller's help on the dagger & armor he just found. He handed over 200 gold for the analysis. Cain stood in awe.

" This, my friend, is the wizard spike. It is a weapon that is imbued with magical properties that allow a spell caster tap into more spell slinging, though it doesn't make your spell level any higher. Its light weight allows you to swing it quickly, & it is also defensive when it comes to standing up to all types of magic.", Cain said, handing over the sword to Orion. Cain was even more surprised when he saw the armor he was about to identify.

" So you found his vault?", Cain asked. Orion nodded. " It has the essence of life. It is very defensive in nature, & it is meant for the fastest type of recovery.", Cain explained, handing over the armor. They thanked him for his help, & all four of them were finally off to the labyrinth.

When they arrived, they went past the doors that lead to Arkaine's vault. They went forward for a couple of seconds, but no enemies were found just yet. They found two staircases; one that led up, & one that led down. They also found a platter; on it was a huge rock.

" It couldn't be... could it?", Mike said. Ninon picked it up, & put in her inventory. " This must be what Griswold wanted.", she said. " Lets go up. I know that if we go up, we will arrive in Tristram at the witch's shack.", Ninon said, heading up the stairs. The rest followed, & after a few seconds, they found themselves at Tristram near the graveyard; it was already night time, & the full moon was out. It looked golden & beautiful to them. They headed back to Tristram. They had gone to Griswolds first, & gave him the magic rock.

" Let me see that... Aye – aye, it is as I believed! Give me a moment.", Griswold said; after 40 minutes he returned. " Here you are. I arranged pieces of the rock with a sliver ring my father left me. Ah, I hope it serves you well.", he said, handing the ring over to Ninon.

They returned to the inn, got up to their rooms, & got ready for tomorrow, but not before they all started studying the holy bolt book he found. He heard a knock at the door. He opened it to find Ninon, who had four books in her arms. They each had the same symbol that was like a sphere.

" I found these books while I was on my own. You remembered the mana shield spell, correct?", Ninon said. " I do. You found for of each, didn't you.", Orion replied. Ninon nodded. Ninon sat down at Orion's desk, while he grabbed a candle; lighting the candle, they started to study the books. There was six books to study. Orion had a holy bolt book & two mana shield spell books to deal with, while Ninon was likewise, going through the same spells. It took them nearly an hour before they finally finished the books. By this time, Orion already unpacked his stuff, & started sorting it out.

Ninon was picking up her stuff, but before she left, she went towards Orion, who was still sorting his stuff out. When he took notice f her, she was already right next to him. She gave him a hug, yet again. This time, however, she decided to hug him while he was turned backwards.

" I... um... Ninon?", Orion said.

" It's alright. I know you like me.", She responded. She started to snuggle him like he was a doll. She stopped that after 15 seconds, & finally left Orion's room, books in hand.

Orion was confused, yet he didn't mind it. He really felt attached to her for some reason. She is dangerous, but she is nice at times. That was what confused him. Orion was finished sorting his equipment out; he then he got himself ready for bed. He blew out the candle, & enshrouded the room in darkness. The only light source was the moon outside his window.

He climbed into th bed, feeling very drowsy...

_**The seventh chapter ends here. I hope you enjoyed that chapter; the eighth chapter will be around, but not for a few days or so. Have a nice day, ladies & gentlemen.**_


	8. The sixth & seventh floors

_**The eighth chapter is finally at hand, everyone. Sorry about the delays, as well as any inconveniences that have occurred. I am trying to relinquish the habit of procrastinating. So... relax & enjoy the story, ladies & gentlemen.**_

_The sixth & seventh floors_

_**Tristram, 5:25 A.M **_

Orion awoke at dawn, unable to sleep. He thought the evil within the dungeons could get steadily worse, thinking that what happened between them & the skeleton known as Shadow Drinker. He never thought there would be monsters that could melt away into the shadows. What could they do against something that can do that, yet be alive, like a demon & be immune to the holy bolt spell? He would have to cast another type of magic at random areas; for all he knew, they could be just right behind him! He couldn't imagine what he could do against monstrosities like that!

He knew that even though he had something that could protect him from the darkness of the unknown, it was still not enough to deal with those fiends. As he got up, he put on Arkaine's valor; he felt a surge of light magic. He knew that Arkaine was somehow still alive inside the armor. There was no sign of his physical presence, yet, he could feel a spirit inside it. He armed himself with the 'Wizard Spike', equipped the buckler, & readied the rest of his equipment; he was ready for action, his perspectives changing from fearful to fearless.

He walked out of his room, & out of the inn. Orion went toward the pathway that led past the blacksmiths shop & the tavern, & finally, towards the fields... only to find Ninon.

" Is something the matter?", Orion asked.

" It's something I forgot to deal with when I was on my own in the labyrinth. You should come with me.", she responded. " We should destroy the monsters in the catacombs. We need to become stronger if we are to ever defeat the evil. Then, we have work to do elsewhere. Right now, lets get to work.", she explained.

" Alright, this better not be a trick.", Orion said sternly; she looked at him, thinking he was an idiot.

" Shut up & come along. Everyone is already up, & they're planning something against the dark fiends within the labyrinth.", she replied, a frown forming; that is, until she noticed he was already prepped & ready to go. She looked at him for a moment, thinking.

" You have had a lot of thoughts about our present situation, haven't you?", she asked.

" Lets go.", Orion said. With that, the twosome left the tavern in silence.

They went straight for the catacombs entrance they found when they found the Magic rock; next to the entrance was Mike, & Ninon's sister, Mignon.

" Alright, everyone ready? We have some serious work to do.", Mike said. He was looking directly at the entrance to the catacombs. They walked in, & after 20 seconds, they found themselves back at the room that had two staircases; one that lead up, & the other, down.

" We should take caution. There is no telling what could be down on the sixth floor...", Orion warned everyone. Everyone nodded, heading toward the staircase that spiraled downward into the darkness. Already had they found nothing but a tome when they reached the sixth floor. There was only one door to go, but they didn't go there just yet. Orion went for the book, aiming to read it; he opened the book, & read the words aloud.

" Beyond the hall of heroes lies the chamber of bone. Eternal death awaits those who would seek to steal the treasures secured within this room. So speaks the lord of terror, & so it is written.", Orion read, closing the book. All four of them had a strange feeling that something was not right. They just didn't know what it was. They went down the stairs, & into the sixth floor. They went down the corridors, & into strange staircase surrounded by pillars.

" This must lead to the chamber of bone.", Mike said. " It must be.", Orion added. Ninon & her sister were silent. All four of them went up the steps, & found themselves in a dark room; upon arrival, there were a few grayish skeletons, equipped with a sword & a shield; Orion unleashed several holy bolts upon the undead warriors, & in one or two hits, they fell to the floor, completely motionless. When they finished off the skeletons, they ran into a strange, red creature. It vanished when he saw the foursome. It appeared right next to Mike, but before the strange monster could even lay a finger on Mike, He slashed the monster, & cut him down.

The group went towards the left, & found several horned demons. Mike ran towards the two giant behemoths, & finished them both off with a couple of sword swipes. They noticed a lever that looked like it was made of bones. Mignon pulled the level, & when that happened, a noise could be heard. It sounded like as if something had moved. They went back to the the main room, & took the right this time. There was another switch, & it too was guarded by more horned demons. Ninon unleashed several charged bolt spells, & killed the two demons off. Mignon pulled the second lever, & again, they head a noise from behind. They looked behind each other, only to find two new pathways.

Before they could go any further, several skeletons & more chameleon like monstrosities appeared; before they could move, Mike was already upon them, weapon in hand. With a few blows of his claymore, the monsters were decimated.

Orion & Ninon took the one on the left, while Mignon & Mike took the one on the right. Orion found a magic bow, & some gold, as well as two books of stone curse at the room they chose to explore. Mike & Mignon found only 400 gold & a suit of scale mail that was radiating with magic. When they left the rooms, they went for the door; what they found when they went through the door, the only thing they could see was gray skeletons. It was literally stuffed with skeletons, armed with shields & swords, just like the last bunch they encountered.

Mignon bombarded the undead horrors with several bolts of holy magic. Orion did the same, while Mike was likewise, attacking the undead monsters with his weapon. Ninon tried to finish the skeletons with a charged bolt spell, only to realize that it didn't do much. Before she could try another spell, one of them tried to close the distance! Orion was prepared for this; Orion slinged several inferno spells, & in a few seconds, the skeletons were nothing but cinders & scattered bones; the whole room of monstrosities was annihilated...

They went through the doorway, & found gold, as well as an amulet that was overflowing with magic. They gathered the stuff they found, & put it into their inventories. They saw another doorway, as they organized the stuff they found. The foursome left the room, & headed for the doorway; they saw a book that was on a pedestal. When they went towards the book, they were ambushed by several horned demons. Mike charged the horned demons, & cut down two of them. Orion slinged firebolt spells, while the Beart sisters unleashed several spells. Orion dealt with the last one. Orion was knocked back by the horned demon's charge trick, & damaged badly. Orion casted a stone curse spell, & finished it off with several firebolt spells. Orion went toward the book, & opened it. Orion read the book, & after ten minutes, he was finished with the book. The other three read the book, & they too finished it after several minutes.

They both left the room, went to the staircase, & with that, they left the chamber of bone. When they arrived back to level 6, they went looking for the seventh floor; only after defeating several more monsters, they found the 7th staircase. When they reached the 7th floor, they found another book. Orion went for the book, & started to read it.

" I can see what you see not. Vision milky, then eyes rot. When you turn, they will be gone, whispering their hidden song. Then you see what cannot be. Shadows move where light should be. Out of darkness, out of mind. Cast down into the halls of the blind...", Orion read, closing the book..

He looked at his comrades; their expressions were filled with nothing other than absolute terror! Mignon looked at the book, & then at her sister. Orion went for the door, & opened it. There was nothing. All four of them went through the door, & into a dark hall. They traversed the hall until there was 2 pathways & a door. Orion turned to everyone.

"I am going to face this alone, everyone.", he calmly stated. All but Mike stared at him.

" Don't do it! Mignon knows you will be in trouble. Mignon's going too!", Mignon exclaimed. Ninon thought he was foolish, but she didn't bother. Nor did Mike.

" Mignon? I think it would be best if Orion did go alone. I know that he needs some help strengthening himself, & this is one way of doing it.", Mike told Mignon. Orion nodded, & with that, he went into the halls of the blind.

When he entered the damned hallways, he made sure to be careful & look out for anything suspicious; before he could take even a step forward, he heard a noise. He looked around, only to hear footsteps. Orion was horrified; he couldn't see anyone, but he could hear them. He looked at the shadows, & then remembered the poem.

_"...Shadows move where light should be...",_ Orion thought. He looked at the shadows as they moved around the light; taking aim, he unleashed a fire bolt spell upon the shadows. It didn't hit the walls, but it hit something. Before he could unleash another, something was forming. It was a yellowish creature that was, quite obviously, not human.

" So... this is what the rhyme meant...?", Orion said. The strange illusion weaver ran towards him & took a swipe at Orion, but he blocked, & with that, Orion unleashed a devastating spell upon the diabolical monster, known only as stone curse; The illusion weaver was turned completely into stone within a matter of seconds. He then took aim at the monster, & unleashed a devastating barrage of firebolt spells. After about the 6th or 7th firebolt spell, the demon was reduced to rubble.

Several more of the illusion weavers showed up, dead set about Orion's untimely demise. He made a dash for to the left, & ran down the corridors. He ran into more of the yellowish demons, & backed up. He was now looking at to directions, each filled with yellowish demons that could turn invisible. Orion made sure that he was completely backed up into a corner. After more of them closed in on him, Orion unleashed another barrage of charged bolts upon the fiendish demons. Most of them simply dropped to the floor, dead from several electrocutions, while others were significantly weakened; they made a retreat down the halls, with Orion in pursuit. He managed to pick one or two of them off by slashing them in the back. Only 1 remained, & Orion ran right into him, while he backed up into the corner, trapped like an animal fresh for the slaughter; the monster was finished off in 5 blows with his dagger.

Orion walked along the hallways, until he noticed a door; upon opening the door, he saw nothing but yellowish demons, & before they could even take a step, he unleashed several spells of inferno. After about ten seconds of being completely roasted, they fell to the floor, dead. One of them dropped a buckler that radiated with strange energy. He put it in his inventory, & with that, he left the room. He noticed a second door on his way out.

After opening the door, he noticed that there was a strange amulet that was in a unique shape. He took the strange, magical amulet, & left the room. After that, he went for the exit, & left the the halls of the blind...

He reunited with his friends, with a smile of accomplishment.

" Are you OK?", Mignon asked. Orion nodded.

" We should head back to town, everyone.", Orion said. With that, the team traversed the hallways, & took the steps that went from the 7th floor, down to the 6th floor, & found the fifth staircase. Once they reached the 5th floor, they heard more noises; they turned around, only to see a small demon wielding a sword & a shield.

" Me relative to Shadow Drinker! You kill my master!", it yelled, as more small demons materialized out of nowhere. Orion knew he would be dealing with someone just like the Shadow Drinker; the small lesser dark ones ran right after Orion, but before any of them could get close to them, Orion casted a spell that invoked a 3 headed dragon out of the ground! The monsters attempted to flee, but the dragon unleashed several fire bolts.

" You kill best friends! Feel the Wrath of Shadow Crow!", he said as he vanished. It materialized right behind Orion, & tried to slash him, but he missed, & with that, he unleashed several fire bolts upon Shadow Crow; he was angry after being severely damaged, but before he could retaliate, Orion attacked & dealt a killing blow to Shadow Crow. The demon had dropped a broad sword that was emitting strange power.

They returned to the staircase, & returned to Tristram. They went to the town elder to identify the stuff they found.

" This is the optic amulet; with it, you can see in the dark, adds more magic, allows you to resist lightning, & absorbs some damage from your enemies.", The town elder said.

" The Broad sword is the knights sword of readiness; its just like the axe you had, except it doesn't require you to use both hands, & its fast too. It's sharp & light to add to this. The buckler is very hard, & it can last longer than most bucklers. The bow fires lightning arrows, instead of normal ones. The scale mail is imbued with obsidian magic, allowing you to resist every element." he said, giving the items back. Orion handed him 500 gold, & thanked him for his help. They left for the inn, & checked in. Orion went for his room, as did the others by the same token. They were quite exhausted after traversing the catacombs like that.

As Orion sat on the bed, he realized he conquered his fear of illusion weavers & their brethren.

_"I am becoming stronger.",_ he thought. " We just need to keep this up, & they will fall against us.", he said in a silent manner. Putting his stuff away, he climbed into the bed. He fell unconscious, very tired from his ordeals...

_**The eighth chapter comes to a close, everyone. I'll be back with more chapters, but in the meantime, have a nice day, ladies & gentlemen. I am very sorry it took this long, but I just wasn't feeling well. I'm back in school, still studying like crazy, if you know what I mean! With that being said, I may not be able to update my stories in a fast manner; have a good day, ladies & gentlemen...**_


	9. The 8th floor, & Zhar The Mad!

_**This is the 9th chapter! I am going to make up for the procrastinating by going at max speed, & pull of the show stopper moves to make a great chapter in just several hours. Lets begin, shall we readers? Relax, grab a snack or something, & enjoy the 9th chapter as it unfolds.**_

_The 8th floor, & Zhar The Mad!_

_**Tristram, 4:15 A.M.**_

Orion awoke, somewhat tired, but feeling rather restless at the same time; he went for his stuff, took out the spell book he found in the dungeon, & started reading it to pass the time by. It was at this time that someone else was up besides Orion.

Ninon was also awake, standing outside of the inn while looking at Orion's window. She teleported behind Orion, who was still reading the book; he wasn't aware of her presence until he heard something coming from behind. When he turned around, he saw Ninon siting there on his bed. He was somewhat used to this by now. This was normally how she appeared. She's right in front of you, then she's behind you, & then she's gone. She had a very odd habit of warping in at the strangest of times...

" You teleported in my room, & you're hoping for me to teach you something, am I right?", Orion said. Ninon shook her head. " Well then, what _did_ you come in here for?", he asked. The only thing he got for a response was another hug.

" Okay...?", he replied. "Well... I don't mind hugs, but this is starting to make me feel weird.", he explained. Ninon took the book from Orion's hands, & put it away; she then took a seat next to Orion. She started to look at his eyes, while Orion was starting to blush.

" Is there something... you need...", Orion began, but before he could finish, Orion was hugged again,. This time, she started snuggling him like as if he was her very own teddy bear. She moved Orion toward the bed, forcing him to lie down. Orion tried to resist, but it was futile.

" Shhh... Try to sleep. We need our rest, so we can be at our best once we need to head back to the godforsaken labyrinth.", Ninon explained. Orion was a little confused. Ninon continued to make him stay in the bed. Orion was restless, but he knew she was right. He laid on his left side, & tried to sleep. His eyes were wide open, & it was almost as if he was trying to move an anvil. However, within a few moments, he fell asleep right next to Ninon.

" _Hm. He's physically weak, but his magic prowess is awesome. I wonder...",_ she thought. She looked at the now-unconscious Orion; he was sleeping like an innocent child. She too fell asleep, but not until she looked at him again.

_two hours later..._

Ninon awoke, feeling a very strange sensation. Orion was awakened by the same thing.

" What... is going on...!?", Orion said. " This is not good. That aura is of the dark attribute. Lets go!", Orion stated, getting his equipment ready. Ninon teleported to her room, & got her equipment ready as well.

Mignon was still asleep, until she felt the same aura of darkness that Orion & Ninon felt. She was jolted awake; her expression was nothing but absolute terror. Mike was awake too, also startled by the aura that everyone else was feeling. Mignon armed herself with the long staff, & prepared her equipment; the warrior, Mike, did the same, & with that, he left his room. He was already downstairs, when he noticed Orion, Mignon, & Ninon already awake & prepared.

" Let me guess; you all felt a dark aura that jolted you three awake?", he said; they nodded at him.

They left the inn, & ran towards the catacombs. When they reached the 5th floor, they ran towards the 6th floor staircase. They felt a strong dark aura in the catacombs, & it was only getting stronger when they reached the 7th floor. The dark aura was really powerful when they reached the 8th floor. Thats when Orion stopped.

" Everyone! Does anyone think it is strange that we have not encountered any monsters of any kind yet? By now, there should have been at least one skeleton, but so far, nothing.", he explained.

" I know. No monster, not even a big demon of some sort or another.", Mike said.

" Maybe it's a trap. Everyone, be on your guard.", Ninon advocated.

They traversed the dark hallways, keeping their eyes open for any suspicious activity. They found a library, but it only had 2 books, & a scroll of healing. Ninon picked up the books, & put them away, & then took a look around. There wasn't even a weak skeleton.

They then left the library, & went through a dark corridor that seemed to go on for about a mile. The only thing that was there was a chest, but it only had 75 gold in it. They found a door at the end of the hall way. When they opened the door, they found a staircase that went even deeper into the labyrinth, & another room with a closed door.

The only creature that was there that was once alive was a small demon. It was badly scorched, & the wounds were hideous. They turned their attention towards the room they found, expecting to find someone there. They opened the door, & entered a room to find another library that was stuffed with pedestals that had books upon books. There was also a bookcase that was occupied by more books. The room had one occupant, & it was someone who resembled a human. It was a man with a very long staff, & dressed up in a robe. They expected him to attack, but he didn't; they waited, but he didn't even pay attention to any of them at all!

The foursome walked toward him, & tried to speak with him; he noticed them, & with that, his expression on his face turned from blank to mad.

" What!? Why are you here!? All these interruptions are enough to make one insane!!", he said, laughing.

" Who are you?", Mignon asked. " Zhar... Zhar the Mad!", the enigmatic being replied. " Here! Take this, & leave me to my studies! Trouble me no more.", Zhar said. He threw a book at Mignon. She caught the book, but not before it smacked her in the face. It was a book that had a flaming wave symbol on it. Mignon looked at Zhar, who was now reading another book. Mignon attempted to try & move towards him for throwing a book at her, but Mike stopped her dead in her tracks.

" He's just playing mind games, Mignon.", Mike said. " Just don't let him get to you.", he finished. Mignon stopped, but then went for the books at the bookcase. When she got there, she took the book that was there. It had a symbol of a shield that was oddly shaped. It was white on the right half of the symbol, yet it was black on the other. Zhar looked up from the book he was reading, & his expression went from mad to dark. Everyone noticed the change, & started to feel the same dark aura they felt earlier.

" Arrrrgh! Your curiosity will be the death of you!!", he said; he started to giggle, but it sounded insane when Orion heard it.

Zhar unleashed a firebolt upon Mignon, but it did something other than just scorch her; it exploded upon impact, knocking Mignon against the wall hard. She groaned in pain as she rose from the floor. Mike tried to strike Zhar, but he disappeared; the only indication to where he went was a small light pattern that went to the far right corner of the room. Orion closed the door so he couldn't escape. Ninon unleashed several streams of lightning towards Zhar, but it didn't really do much to him. He felt some pain, from what they could tell, but before they could close the distance & corner him, he started slinging fireballs toward everyone. Orion was hit, but Ninon dodged the oncoming fireballs.

Mike snuck up behind Zhar, & struck him in the back. He countered with another fireball, & knocked him back into the wall. Ninon unleashed the shadow spell at the insane monster. He was bound, but he vanished again, & with that, the chains dropped to the floor, & disappeared. Zhar reappeared behind Ninon, & knocked her back with 2 fireballs; she was badly injured, & before she could move, he, Zhar, unleashed a third fireball. Ninon teleported out of the way, & reappeared behind Orion.

Orion started conjuring magic. In ten seconds, he unleashed the stone curse spell. Zhar was completely encased in stone. Ninon finished him off with the inferno spell. In a few moments, he was now a pile of smoldering rocks, ash also about his corpse. The only thing he dropped was another book.

" I am sorry. Did I break your concentration?", Ninon taunted. They took the books that were on the pedestal, & left the library. They found nothing else after searching around the library. The only thing they found was several corpses of either monsters or villagers from Tristram.

" This must have been Zhar's work. There is no other explanation.", Orion said. " The dark aura is gone now, so he won't be causing any more damage.", Orion added.

" Sadistic monster; he hit Mignon very hard!", Mignon ranted.

" I feel like I was just beaten with a club.", Mike said, rubbing his neck.

"Lets head back to Tristram.", Orion advocated.

_3 hours later..._

Everyone was back at the town of Tristam via the same way they did when they entered the catacombs. They entered the inn, feeling very sore from the fight with Zhar. They checked their inventory, & identified 13 books they found while they were at the catacombs. There were 2 books of Stone Curse, Inferno, & three books of Berserk. There were also three new spell books that had symbols that were shaped like balls of fire that were bigger than the firebolt symbol. The symbols were almost enshrouded with fiery stars as well; almost very different from the firebolt books.

Orion took one of the books with the fireball symbol, as did Mignon & Ninon. Two Stone Curse spell books went to Mike, as well as one book of Inferno. Orion took the last Inferno book, while Ninon took the three spell books that were imbued with the spell known as berserk. The last three were books that had a shield with two sides that were colored differently. They took it to Adria, hoping to find out what the spell book was called.

When they arrived there, they found Adria near the cauldron. " I sense a soul in search of answers...", she said, not even turning around.

"What is the book imbued with?", Ninon asked.

" It is a spell book imbued with the spell that reflects your enemies attacks back at them.", Adria began. " It is called "Reflect", a very powerful spell.", she explained. " I have a spell book you may want. It is a spell that allows you to travel back to town without putting in a lot of tedious legwork. The name of the spell is Town Portal. The cost is three thousand gold if you want it.", she finished. Orion handed over the required gold, while Adria handed him the book of Town Portal.

Orion took the three reflect spell books for safe keeping, & put them in his inventory. The new spell book, Town Portal, also wound up being deposited in his bag.

With that, they left the Witch's shack. Returning to the inn, they went for their rooms. Orion went back to reading his books again; as he read, he finished the fireball spell & the Inferno books. The Town Portal spell was learned in almost five minutes. He didn't read the Reflect spell books just yet. After two hours of reading, Orion was back in bed.

Orion was still awake, still restless after their battle with Zhar. He left his room, & went to Ninon's room. He was about to knock on the door, when suddenly, Ninon appeared right next to him.

" Do you need something, Orion?", she asked.

" Do you mind if I stay with you in your room tonight? I cannot sleep.", Orion asked.

She nodded, & with that, they entered the room. He entered her room, which was very dark.

She took her gear off, put it away, & got into the bed. Orion did the same, as she got under the covers of her bed. Before Orion knew it, he was asleep. Ninon looked at him as he rested. She started to blush a little; lying on her arm, she started to advocate a plan for him... after a while, Ninon fell asleep...

_**OK. The 9th chapter comes to a close. I hope you are enjoying the story. Sorry about procrastinating earlier in the last chapter I added. Please review the chapters, & have a good day, ladies & gentlemen...**_


	10. The Anvil of Fury? Part 1

_**This is the 10th chapter!! I hope you are enjoying the story. Right now, I have been working very hard on this chapter, & for good reason; this is the special chapter that involves the expansion of Diablo. Of course, with that being said, this will probably be one insane, long story that will last for what will seem like an eternity, which is why I suggest you & your buddies get some snacks, as well as a few drinks maybe, just to tide yourself over this overgrown part of the story; just for everyone's sake, I will split this behemoth of a story into several parts. Now, lets begin; relax, read, & enjoy.**_

_The Anvil of Fury!? Part 1_

_**Tristram, 6:00 A.M.**_

Orion was still asleep, when Ninon awoke him. " Wake up. I have an idea.", she explained. Orion was still asleep in her arms; he really didn't look like he was ready, & she knew that he wasn't. Orion opened his eyes, feelings of drowsiness & weakness still coursing through his mind & body.

" You need to train & better yourself. You look very weak. It's best if you do, because not all the time are you going to be able to rely on magic.", Ninon whispered. Orion agreed, hugging her. She smiled, hugging back. Orion rose from the bed, & left Ninon's room, preparing for today.

_Meanwhile..._

Mike awoke, feeling very restless; he had reason to believe he wouldn't be able to help any of his buddies if he doesn't get a weapon that could help stop the evil that dwells within that godless abattoir, mostly thanks to Ninon's efforts when she destroyed his axe at the tomb of King Leoric.

Worse, his weapon didn't look the same, so he tried to repair it. It wasn't as good as Griswold's handiwork, which is what made Mike question its use. Preparing his gear, Mike left his room. He walked down the hallways, past the tables, & out of the inn. He went towards Griswold's smithy, & beckoned him; he got an unexpected response from Griswold.

" Greetings! It's always a pleasure to see one of my best customers. I know that you have venturing deeper into the labyrinth, & there is a story I was told that you may find worth the time to listen to...", Griswold began.

... Needless to say, Mike was intrigued by this; he payed a great deal of attention to what he was about to say.

" One of the men who returned from the labyrinth told me about a mystic anvil that he came across during his escape. His description reminded me of legends I had heard in my youth about the burning hellforge where powerful weapons of magic are crafted. The legend had it that deep within the hellforge rested the Anvil Of Fury! This anvil contained within it the very essence of the demonic underworld...", he explained. Mike was beginning to think of what might come of this.

" It is said that any weapon crafted upon the burning anvil is imbued with great power. If this anvil is indeed the Anvil of Fury, I may be able to make you a weapon capable of defeating even the darkest lord of hell!", Griswold the Blacksmith said. This, also needless to mention, shocked Mike, & made him smile with glee. Imagine his satisfaction if he was to acquire such a weapon!

" Find the anvil for me, & I'll get to work!", Griswold finished. By this time, Mike was smiling, his hands shaking. Orion & the crew were already out of the inn, looking for Mike. They noticed him at Griswold's shop, standing still like a statue; they walked over to investigate, wondering what happened.

He stood still, even when Orion was right in front of him; even when the whole group was right in front of him, he was as still as a rock, the winds passing by silently.

" Alright!", Mike screeched. Everyone's eyebrows raised, including Griswolds. Before anyone had a chance to respond, Mike rushed passed everyone, knocking Mignon & Orion sideways, while Ninon evaded his mad dash via teleportation. Griswold was out of range, so he didn't have to worry about Mike's reckless stampede.

" What was that all about!?", Mignon screamed. Ninon warped right next to her, still looking in the direction that Mike was running. Everyone looked at each other, & then at Griswold.

" I just told him about the Anvil of Fury. It is an anvil that is used to make powerful weapons of magic. If this anvil is indeed the Anvil of Fury, I will make him a weapon that may be capable of defeating even the darkest lord of hell! I am sure I can make him one of the legendary proportions; that is, unless it is actually _not _the Anvil of Fury.", Griswold explained to the three. Everyone's expression, excluding Griswold's, was either blank, or just total confusion... or a pure mix of both.

Walking over to Cain, they asked him if he knew anything about the "Anvil of Fury".

" Griswold speaks of the Anvil of Fury: A legendary artifact long searched for, but never found. Crafted from the metallic bones of the razor pit demons, the anvil was smelt around the skulls of the five most powerful magi of the underworld.", Cain explained. " Carved with runes of power & chaos, any weapon or armor forged upon this anvil will be immersed into the realm of chaos. It is said that the unpredictable nature of chaos makes it difficult to know what the outcome of this smithing will be...", he finished. Everyone walked away after he finished.

" Everyone, we should let Mike go it alone, & let him get the anvil. It will be he who gets the benefit out of that whole quest. Not us.", Orion said.

" Besides, we need to go somewhere else.", Ninon said, turning her attention to Orion. She looked at him with an expression of thought. Orion looked passed Griswold's shop & another house, there was a wall of rocks barely standing; past that was something he couldn't identify, or at least, not until he started walking towards it.

" Orion, what are you doing? Tell Mignon!", Mignon said, albeit, she started to do the same when she noticed what Orion saw. She thought her eyesight was getting worse, but when Ninon started walking towards what Orion is heading toward, someone or some_thing_ had to be there; she walked towards what the other two were moving towards, moving close to the stone wall, barely half Mignon's size.

When they got close enough, they got probably one of the biggest shocks of their life; there was a bridge past the stone wall, & beyond the bridge was a horrible, disgusting, _bloated_, thing swelling out of the ground! Its color was several different types of green, tentacles rising out of the ground, albeit, they were stationary.

" What on Earth is that!?", Mignon asked, completely awestruck.

" This is some bug-like infestation. I can't teleport in unless I want to get surprised by whatever lurks down there.", Ninon said. I was planing to use this as a ploy in my plans earlier when we were enemies, but I won't be doing that now. No reason to attack my allies, as you are well aware of.", Ninon added.

Orion looked past the bug-like creature, only to notice that there was an orchard, an enclosure containing fruit trees & other supplies that most farmers would normally keep.

Ninon tapped upon Orion's shoulder, & directed his attention towards a man very far off in the distance. " That's the farmer who owns this orchard; lets go.", Ninon told everyone. Before they could even take a step towards the farmer, someone was already talking to him; the new entity didn't seem to pleased. Orion rushed toward the twosome, hoping to discover what is going on; upon arrival, the new entity appeared to be quite angry. He left the two, & headed back towards the town's inn.

Orion looked at him as he left the fields. " _What is with him? Is there something that he needs?",_ he thought. Orion walked towards the tavern, looking for him. He wasn't seen there, but when he looked in the direction of where the healer was, he saw the man who was with the farmer, he saw him there, right next to the rocks that were near the healer's home.

" Is something wrong?", Orion asked the stranger. He looked at him with a glare of doom. Orion took a step back while putting his hand on the hilt of the Wizard Spike. The man was an odd sight, wearing sandals, as well as blue pants. He didn't have a shirt or any type of clothing that covered his chest area. He had a strange hair due that consisted of a ponytail, & his skin was somewhat red. He wielded a staff, his expression, total disappointment.

" If you can't help me get something I need to blast through that disgusting horrible, bug-like _thing,_ it would be best if you left me alone.", the stranger replied. " I tried so many times to rid the town of that disgusting thing, but no matter what, it is futile in my case.", he added. It was at this time that Ninon & her sister showed up right behind Orion.

" If you want, you can come with us, & we may be able to help you out.", Ninon said. The monk perked up when she invited him.

" Well... OK. My name is Kendal.", the man said. " I am a monk, looking to survive in this world. My true home was taken from me, & lacking the materials such as iron, I have been forced to use either staves or my actual body as a weapon.", added. Everyone was surprised; he, Kendal, could be even stronger than Mike himself!

" Welcome to the group. My name is Orion. These are my companions Ninon Beart, & her sister, Mignon Beart. My other friend is away, but you will meet him eventually. He is named Mike.", Orion said, introducing two of his three friends to their new companion.

" We should head back to the farmer. I imagine he may be willing to talk to us about this; eventually, he is going to consider the fact that he may not be able to feed his cows, or get any of his supplies.", Orion said.

" Agreed.", Ninon said. The monk, Kendal, didn't.

" Lets check & see if he is willing to let _all_ of us attack the creature.", Ninon advocated.

As expected, the farmer known as Lester actually called all four of them to him.

" So, you're the hero everyone has been talking about. Perhaps you could help a poor, simple farmer out of a terrible mess?", Lester said. " At the edge of my orchard, just south of here, there is a horrible thing swelling out of the ground! I can't get to my crops, or my bales of hay, & my poor cows will starve!", Lester said, looking at the cows with a sad look.

" The witch gave me this & told me that it would blast that thing out of my field. If you could do this for me, I would be forever grateful. I'd do it myself, but someone has to stay here with the cows.", Lester explained.

Lester handed Orion what looked like a strange rune of some sort or another. All four of them looked at the thing.

" It is a rune bomb.", Orion concluded. " We will take care of that horrid thing.", Orion said, leaving Lester to his cows.

When the four arrived there, they saw the swelling insect like thing. Orion got close enough, & put the bomb right next to the disgusting creature. The bomb went off when it touched the infected area; an explosion occurred, destroying the thing, & blasting it to pieces.

" We should tell Lester that the thing has been destroyed.", Mignon said. The four jogged towards Lester, who obviously was happy about the aftermath.

" I heard this explosion from here! Many thanks to you, kind stranger. What with all these things comin' out of the ground, monsters taking over the church, & so forth, these are trying times. I am but a poor farmer, but here, take this with my great thanks.", Lester said, rewarding them with an amulet that looked different.

" It is a 'Auric' Amulet. Its ability is extra gold capacity.", Lester said. Everyone was a little surprised about that.

_Meanwhile, _

Mike was in the labyrinth, at the 8th floor. He managed to get here so far without any encounters.

" Oh man, I should be careful.", Mike said. He walked down the stairs that spiraled downwards. As he made his descent, it was getting warmer for Mike. The farther he went, the hotter it got.

" It is hot down here!", Mike said silently, sweat dripping from his head.

_Back at Tristram..._

" Orion. I sense something from the thing we just blew up.", Ninon said. Orion felt the same way. They were now at Griswold's shop, waiting for Mike.

" Lets check it out, & see what is going on.", Kendal said.

" Right.", Orion agreed.

They treaded towards what remained of the _thing _they blew up with the rune bomb, aiming to find out what was going on...

_**OK... That's the first part. I hope you enjoyed it, everyone. I would appreciate it if you would leave a review, either containing constructive criticism or a nice compliment of some sort or another. No negative comments, as I really have worked hard to make this story. For now, I will be preparing the next part of the chapter, but in the meantime, however, have a good day, ladies & gentlemen.**_


	11. The Anvil of Fury? Part 2

_**No notes from me at this time... well, save for the fact that this chapter revolves mostly around Mike's quest known as "The Anvil of Fury". Well... now to continue the story.**_

_The Anvil of Fury!? Part 2_

_**Tristram, 8:45 A.M., the caves, 9th floor**_

Mike was in the labyrinth, at a cave... which something around in the cave really heated up the situation... literally; it wasn't in sight though. Mike figured it could be those monsters that vanish, just like Shadow Drinker, that may be causing this heat issue. He made sure to keep his blade ready, & with that, he moved forward. The place was dark, & it was quite big. There were no monsters at this time, nor any enemies for that matter.

He came to a stop when he found a section that had a wide opening on the left & the right. That wasn't what caught his eye. When he looked at the ground, he was shocked to see there was actual lava! There was a pathway that only lead around to another part of the area, surrounded by more lava.

"_Oh great... I bet they're around here somewhere near the lava.",_ Mike thought. "_But who?"_, he pondered. He moved to the road surrounded by lava, & walked forward; the pathway turned abruptly to the left, & then forward. Everywhere he looked, he either saw lava, or the rocky walls.

As he crossed the roads surrounded by lava, he came to a place where there actually _wasn't _lava. The place had a door with a wall that wasn't complete. It was a fence like wall with a doorway, & when he moved to the right to see what was beyond the door, he popped right behind the door, _shocked. _He saw what looked like a goat demon, but its skin was very dark, & its fur was almost pitch-black!

" _I didn't expect to run into another one of those freaks. He's dark-skinned, but he looks just like Gharbad & the rest of those goat demons...",_ Mike thought. He looked past the doorway a second time, & he was still standing there wielding a bow.

" _Hmm... this maybe easy... perhaps too easy.", _he thought. By the time he turned around, he noticed that there were now two goat demons. Then, a dozen... & now 25 of them... all of which were armed with bows.

" _Oh man... why do I get the feeling they noticed me...?",_ Mike feared. They, the night goats, raised their bows, cocked their arrows, took aim at the door Mike was hiding behind, & fired several volleys of arrows.

Mike lifted his shield, & blocked several of them while dodging the rest. He opened the door, rushed toward the goat demons, claymore in hand. A few of the goat demons ran for their lives, while others attempted to pelt Mike with arrows. Mike gave the first one a critical blow, knocking him down to the floor with his claymore, dead. Before Mike could move, more arrows were shot.

Mike was dodging them at an ever increasing rate, raising his shield to avoid being struck. He struck another one of the goat demon twice, & killed another one. He almost got hit by the goat demons, & with that, Mike rushed towards the remaining 23 goat demons, & finished them off, slash-&-hack style.

" Man... that was tough.", he thought. He then turned his attention to his surroundings; the left was a dead end, but right was another story. He treaded cautiously toward the path on the right, & then he saw several monsters that looked like the butcher, save for the fact that they were missing a bloody apron, a cleaver, & their color was more yellowish than usual. 6 of them started to rush towards them, albeit, in a slow manner.

Mike retreated, luring them back the pathway surrounded by lava; one rushed slowly towards the pathway, & the two then started slugging each other. The demon tried punching him, albeit, he hit him once. Mike finished him with several hacks, & rushed towards the remaining five. He only got hit about 5 times, but he finished three of them off with his claymore, while blocking their punches with the shield.

The two remaining kept on trying to hit him with their fists; a meaningless effort, as they were brought to the ground, stab wounds all around. Mike went past the now dead beings, & then took the pathway the toad demons took.

He then came across another area, which was swarming with with more of the goat demons in the night clan variety. Each were equipped with bows, & before they started slinging bow slinging, & with that, Mike ran for it; a dozen total, as Mike noticed. There was lava right in front of the night goats, & behind them. There was only one pathway that led to the twelve goats, & Mike was taking it with the worst of intentions. Rushing towards the goat demons, he started slinging his sword, hacking them left & right while his brethren kept on firing more arrows. They either missed, or were blocked, & in three blows, one of the night goats were knocked to the floor, dead.

Mike ran towards the night goat demons, while they in turn, fled. He stabbed a second one in the back, & sent it to the ground, meeting the same fate as the last goat demon did. The warrior went towards the goat demons, while the remaining ten beat a retreat from Mike. The goat demons of the night clan found themselves at a dead end, with Mike coming towards them via the only pathway they just took.

Mike sealed their fate with the claymore. The first two were struck down in the back, while another was cornered & slashed; rinse & repeat. The only things they dropped were gold (630 to be exact), & two books. Picking up what he found, he took another look around.

After finishing off those monstrosities, he retraced his steps, & found himself back at the same area where he encountered the second group of night goats. There was a big hole in the wall that led down.

" _I should head back to town.",_ Mike advocated. He was about to leave, but when he looked to the left, he saw something else. It was a large treasure chest, still unopened, right next to the entrance. Mike walked toward it, making sure to keep an eye out for anything out of the ordinary. When he got close enough, he opened the chest. There wasn't much, except a shield with that was emitting very strong magic, as well as a strangely shaped staff that was also radiating with powerful magic. Even better was the fact there was 125 gold. He put what he found in his inventory, eager to see what it was when he returns back to Tristram.

He was about to leave, but before he did, something else caught his attention. There was a horrid stench of death coming from another area that wasn't explored just yet. It was to the left of the entrance he found. He walked towards it, weapon in hand, expecting an enemy to show up. What he found was anything but; he looked at the ground, & noticed the body of a slain hero. His corpse was right next to another hole in the cave, albeit, it lead upwards.

Mike walked towards the body of the slain hero. He noticed that there was something he was carrying right in the bag of his; Mike took whatever it was the slain hero was carrying; what he found was a suit of armor that was overflowing with magical energy. Mike took one last look at the body, & then, he started to look around. He heard several noises that sounded like footsteps.

" Rest in peace, my friend...", Mike said silently, walking towards the area where the noise was coming from. Before he made his seventh step away from the body, out of the shadows came another hideous monster with a horn on his head that was uniquely shaped. Mike evaded the charging attack, & turned to see who it was. The monster was enshrouded with the same stench of death as the corpse of the slain hero was covered in. Mike concluded that this monster was responsible for his death.

The monster made a screech of terror, roaring at the warrior. " Die! I am Break-spine the Cruel!", it bellowed. He made another charge towards Mike, while Mike evaded. He slashed Break-Spine in the back, while the horned demon turned to counterattack.

Mike put some distance behind him, & retreated through the exit he found close to the slain hero's corpse. Arriving back in a clearing behind the town or Tristram, he stopped, a little tired.

" _I need something that can keep him still. But what?", _Mike thought. He then remembered the spell Orion used on Snotspill. " _Man... of all the times for Orion not to be around. Wait a minute...", _

he remembered the books he found in the 9th floor of the dungeon where he killed the second set of night clan goat demons, as well as the last few spells he learned when he identified the last few books they found when they dealt with Zhar. He took them out, wondering what spell books they were.

On the first one he took out, he noticed a symbol that had a small circle that looked like lightning magic. The second one was the book of inferno.

" Not what I had in mind but... they'll do. This might help me stand toe-to-toe with Break-spine the Cruel...", Mike said. He began reading the Inferno spell book; it took him about an 40 minutes before he was done reading the spell book He had some difficulty with the Inferno spell book, but he managed to learn the Inferno spell. The second book took him almost double the time he took learning the Inferno spell. That didn't mean he didn't learn it, & with that, he was done reading. He put the claymore away, & took out the Knights broad sword of readiness out. He also changed his armor from studded leather, to the Obsidian scale mail he found. He was now ready to tackle the monster that doomed the slain hero.

" Psst! Over here!", Someone said. Mike turned around to see a kid step out of the bushes. He was a sad sight, wearing clothes that were quite messy. He also had a peg for one of his legs.

" You're Wirt, aren't you?", Mike asked. The kid nodded.

" I have something for sale, but it will take 50 gold pieces for a look.", Wirt offered. Mike looked at him with a bad look.

" What do you have?", Mike responded, handing over 50 gold pieces. Wirt showed him a ring that was severely flowing with magic.

" It is called a "Steel Ring of Wizardry". It will cost about 6000 in your case.", Wirt offered. He only had 755 + 1000 in his pocket now. He also had some other items to sell, so he decided to wait for now. He declined Wirt's deal, & walked away. He noticed a bridge that lead over a river of water; a short distance away was a house, as another tavern.

" I'm back at Tristram? I guess I found a new shortcut to use.", Mike thought. He walked towards Cain, aiming to identify the stuff he found in the ninth floor of the labyrinthine abattoir.

Cain greeted Mike in the same way he greeted most people. Mike asked him if he could identify the shield, armor, & the staff.

Identifying the staff & the shield he found was at the cost of 300 gold, but he found out it was well worth it; he found a unique shield that was very powerful, containing magic that boosted its armor class valiantly. The armor he found from the slain hero was very tough & sturdy, just like Orion's shield. The staff was uniquely shaped, & it was only known as " The protector", a very powerful staff. It was capable of healing its wielder, while protecting it & boosting Vitality. It also acted as a shield, & a damage reducer. Mike thought it would be best if he gave this to the group. He sold the shield & the armor, & with that, he earned 30000 gold. He then returned to Wirt, aiming to get the ring.

" Hey. I'm back!", Mike said. " 50 gold pieces to take a look at it.", Wirt responded, coming out of the bushes yet again. Mike handed him the gold, & he took another look at the ring.

" You say 6000 right? Here. I'll buy it.", Mike said. Handing him 6000 gold, Wirt gave him the expensive, yet intriguing ( & needless to say, powerful) ring. He equipped the Steel Ring of Wizardry, & left. He turned his attention to the entrance to the 9thfloor; he treaded cautiously, anticipating Break-spine the Cruel's arrival with the worst of intentions...

When he arrived, he notice the unique horned demon was bellowing strange noises.

" Hey! What's the matter? Scared!?", Mike taunted. The animal turned around, & saw Mike, standing at the exit, gear equipped & ready for action. Before the warrior could say anything, eight more horned demons, presumably Break-Spine's, showed up. Mike moved toward Break-Spine, but before he could reach the foul animal, the leader's minions surrounded Mike, while the leader rushed towards him. They all prepared for a charge attack, & then rushed towards him in a fast manner. They thought they could finish him with all nine of them attacking from all sides, but they were wrong.

Before they struck him, Mike ducked. All nine of them missed, & with that, Mike chanted several words, & in three seconds, a circle of lightning surrounded Mike, severely electrocuting most of them to death, while others were significantly weakened. There were only two horned demons left, & that was Break-Spine, & one of his minions; he, Mike, struck the minion with his blade, & finished him off with a burst of the Inferno spell. The lesser minion dropped to the floor after being roasted, dead.

Mike turned around to face the leader of the horned demons, aiming to do something maleficent to him to kill the monster. The unique animal bended down, & rushed towards Mike again, aiming to gore him. Mike sidestepped, & disposed of " The Cruel" as he saw fit. The demon-like animal dropped something that caught Mike's eye. It was a ring with unique designs, black gems embedded on the sides, its color everywhere else, gold-like. It was also radiating with strange, yet powerful magic.

Mike returned to Tristram via the new entrance he found when he retreated earlier. Walking towards Cain, he asked him if he could identify the ring he had. When he paid him the one-hundred gold, he found out that it was no ordinary ring, just as rare as the "Thinking Cap" Orion found.

" This is " The Ring of Engagement"; it's capable of lowering the damage & doing some damage to the opponent when it attacks. It also protects you from harm, while allowing you to lower your opponent's armor.", Cain explained. Thanking him, Mike left. He returned to Griswold's shop, wanting to see what he had for sale. Griswold could tell Mike hadn't found the Anvil of fury yet; it was the look on Mike's face that told him that.

" Nothing yet, eh? Well, keep searching. A weapon forged upon that anvil could be your best hope, & I am sure I can make you one of the legendary proportions.", Griswold told Mike; he nodded, continuing to look at what he had. Nothing had caught his interest, & with that, he returned back to the tavern for a break...

_**OK... That's that. I am not done yet with this chapter; this is part two of chapter 10. Please review. Have a good day, ladies & gentlemen.**_


	12. The climax, & the new threat!

_**The 3rd part of the chapter is at hand. Now, for author notes, I will make a recap of these parts that have been split for several reasons; first, if somehow, I lose the other arts, at least the one with a combination of the parts will take its place; two, you can find all the parts in one page, & three for convenience. Now to begin, ladies & gentlemen.**_

_The climax, & the new threat!_

_**2:30 P.M. The tavern of the rising sun, Mike's room...**_

Mike was trying to calm down & rest up after his battle with the monster that killed the slain hero. He was organizing the things he obtained, while figuring out what to do with them. Already, almost 3 hours have passed since, yet Mike was feeling much better after his break. Looking at the unique staff known as "The Protector", he decided this would be a good staff for either Orion or Mignon.

"_I suppose I will just carry them around for now.",_ Mike thought. " _Leaving them around isn't a good idea."_

He left his room, & then the tavern. He went back to the cave, aiming to get the Anvil of Fury.

Upon arrival, he noticed the body of the slain hero, undisturbed. Looking around, there was nothing, not even an enemy. Break-Spine the Cruel was still in the same place where Mike had slain it. He past the corpses & the chest, & had arrived at the other hole that led even deeper into the labyrinth.

" I need to be careful; those monsters in the tenth floor are bound to be stronger than the ones I faced here.", Mike reminded himself. He treaded cautiously down the steps, weapons bared, shield at the ready...

_Meanwhile..._

Orion, Mignon, Ninon & their new recruit, Kendal, were in the hive-like area. Before they could take a step further, they heard a voice that didn't belong to a human, or any other creature for that matter.

" We have long lain dormant, & the time to awaken has come! After our long sleep, we are filled with great hunger. Soon, now, we shall feed...", the horrific voice bellowed. Everyone had a look of confusion &/or terror. Mignon looked around, her eyes wide open. Kendal however stood still, rather calm. Ninon was likewise. Orion was confused, but he also felt a little calm. Out of nowhere came a monster that was quite scary, to say the least. It was a gargantuan spider, on its back legs, insect-like fangs bared.

" Is that...!?", Mignon asked halfway. Orion nodded, preparing himself for any attacks from the humanoid spider. Kendal stared at the spider, surprised about this. Before the spider even made its first move, Kendal stepped in, & put an end to the spider with his staff.

" Is that all? They're not even like the monsters I faced. Whatever the case, we should go find whatever threatened us, & destroy it.", Kendal advocated. Orion was a little surprised, as were the Beart sisters. He had landed the first blow, & the spider monster was already knocked down, already gone to meet its maker.

" I wonder if there even _is_ a challenge at all here.", Kendal said. To everyone's disappointment, several dozen monsters of different kinds, such as spider monsters, strange demon-like boars, & ones that looked like gigantic scorpions appeared five seconds later after Kendal's boasting.

" You were saying, Kendal?", Ninon jeered at Kendal for his foolish taunt. He didn't even speak after an armada of crazy & mortifying insects or hell-boars appeared. His expression went from fearless to cautious, yet overwhelmed. Mignon started firing fireballs toward the stingers, while Ninon electrocuted the rest. Kendal actually took three of the Hell-Boars out without much trouble. That is, until a new creature showed up.

A floating monster that was shredded up, moved toward Kendal; he struck the shredded being, but he barely even damaged the creature at all. He was tough to hit when it came to physical attacks. Orion unleashed several doses of the Inferno spell, incinerating the being. After about five minutes of battling, they finally beat the large group of the new monstrosities.

" Next time, Kendal, learn to keep your big mouth shut.", Ninon roared. Kendal didn't seem to care much. " Watch it; you're no better.", he replied, looking around the corpses, finding a book that had a strange symbol on it. The symbol looked like a being made that was composite of flames.

" Hm? Is that...!?", Orion began, " The Elemental spell!?", he finished, awe-struck. He took the book out of Kendal's hands, & went toward the entrance they took to get into the insect lair. That is, until Kendal intervened.

" Orion! I don't think we should leave; whatever made that speech didn't seem to be joking. An armada of those monsters just tried to kill us, & they were planing to turn everyone around here into food.", Kendal said. " We shouldn't leave until we deal with our pest problem first, lest we wind up being food for the maggots.", he advised. Orion was hesitant, thinking about the book he just found. The book that Zhar gave them was something he should no doubt consider in his arsenal of spells, & the Elemental spell was no exception, as it was a very destructive spell indeed. He wanted to go back to town & learn it now, so he could be prepared for any more problems that may arise. Looking at Ninon, he noticed that she was looking at him too, albeit, she seemed to actually want him to stay here.

Orion agreed to stay after some thought, albeit, he was still uneasy about staying here.

_Later on..._

Mike was at the tenth floor, keeping his eyes open, watching for anything out of the ordinary that had an intentions of his demise. His attempts to sneak around were futile. He either came across diabolical dark clans armed with bows, or magma demons packing serious heat, quite literally. He managed to withstand some of their attacks while countering them with some semi-devastating attacks of his own. After running around in the tenth level of the dungeon, he came across a small island surrounded by lava. On it was a silhouette of an anvil. Before he could even respond, several arrows flew by, missing him by inches. More of the night clan goat demons were around, armed with bows; worse, more of those horrid "horned demons" were back, except their color was obsidian. To top it all off, there were monsters that fired globs of acid, & they seemed to have a leader among them, as did the Obsidian Lords. Gargoyles were swarming the place, at least six of them, & they too had a leader among them.

He ran off, trying to avoid fighting them all, but the leader of the Obsidian Lords prevented his escape. He charged him like a rushing bull, but the wild animal missed. The pit beasts fired several globs of acid, but they only landed in the lava or the ground mercifully. Mike was running more than he was attacking, which wasn't what he liked doing. He saw an opening in their attack patterns, & unleashed the Inferno spell towards the pit beasts. It did some damage to a few of the acid beasts, but it did very little to the leader, if any damage at all. Finishing a few of them off with his sword, he ran.

The gargoyles proved to be those most frustrating pack of monstrosities he had to deal with so far. Tough to hit, & having strong attacks, but they really were slow. He managed to pick one of them off before having to run. The goat demons couldn't get him due to the other groups of monsters being in their way. One of them actually hit the leader of the obsidian lords right in the back, immobilizing him temporarily. Mike rushed toward him, & delivered the killing blow to the leader. It dropped something, but he didn't have time to pick it up. He ran again, barely managing to avoid their attacks. He was getting exhausted after having to move like crazy.

He unleashed several more doses of the Inferno spell towards the pit beasts again, this time, killing two of them off, but it barely even damaged the leader. Getting frustrated, Mike rushed toward him, blade in hand. The leader of the pit beasts ran away, trying to avoid his wrath, but Mike anticipated his retreat, & caught up to him, planing to repay him for his troublesome interference. In three vicious hacks, the beast was felled, its acid-like blood spilling on the hot ground. It dropped something too, & this time, Mike had time to pick it up; it was an amulet that was filled with magic. Most of them were lost without their leader; losing their leader was like chopping the head of a snake off, making them relatively harmless. Mike finished them off, while avoiding the arrows of the night clan. The only remaining threats, if any, were the gargoyles. There were only five left, but that didn't make them any less dangerous than they were right now, or at least they were not much less dangerous than before, even after killing one of their comrades.

Mike picked off another one of the flying demons while taking a nasty claw strike from another one. Mike rushed toward the goat demons, advocating a plan with the worst of intentions. He struck one of the twelve night goats down, while significantly damaging another. He chased them down the pathway between the lava, & after cornering them, he took them down, slash-&-hack style. The gargoyles were a little ways off, but Mike expected them to come right for him. Oddly enough, they didn't. Rather, they went to a place, & then sat down, becoming stone statues while becoming completely immobile in the process. He went for the item that the obsidian lord had dropped, after finishing off the rest of the Obsidian lords that is. It was another amulet, & like the other amulet, this one was also flowing with magical energy.

Mike took one look at the anvil; it must be the Anvil of Fury. There were strange markings on the anvil that you wouldn't normally see on an anvil, or a normal one for that matter. It was very heavy to pick up, but he still managed to put it in his inventory.

" I need to get this to Griswold!", he said quickly. He went to take out another scroll of town portal, but he didn't have one! Mike had to improvise, but with what? He looked up ahead, trying to figure out if there was a way out if this chaotic deathtrap. He noticed that there were only four gargoyles, their leader among them on the right of the pathway that lead to the Anvil's location. He then noticed another pathway that went left, leading away from the monsters; he retreated in a hastily manner, aiming to get back to town, unscathed.

He rushed through the hot caves, encountering a magma demon every now & then. He rushed past a few of the magma demons, while cutting them down; The next monster he ran into was another acid beast. He didn't dare let the deadly monster fire even a single glob of acid; he cut his life short by firing one dose of Inferno, incinerating the monster.

running away from the now-smoldering piles of acid, he made it back to the entrance to 10th level. He walked up the steps, & returned to the 9th floor.

Upon arrival, he turned to the right, & went towards the pathway that lead back up to Tristram. He still had his blade, ready to slaughter any enemy that got in his way, shield bared for any oncoming attack.

he returned to Tristram with the Anvil of Fury. He went for the storyteller, aiming to identify the amulets he had found. One of them actually enabled him to recover very quickly, while the other amulet only allowed him to learn more spells & tap into even more spell slinging. Both identifications were at the cost of a hundred gold each.

His next visit was to the blacksmith, Griswold. He walked toward him, & Griswold could tell that he had brought him the anvil, due to the rather positive expression on his face.

" Oh, I can hardly believe it! This is the Anvil of Fury! Good work my friend. Now, we'll show those bastards that there are no weapons in hell more deadly than those made by men!", Griswold began, congratulating Mike.

Mike gave the blacksmith the anvil from Mike's inventory, & went into the workshops forging room. Griswold began working on the weapon he had planned, aiming to make one of the ultimate weapons he probably will ever make...

_**OK! This has been the third part of the quest. It's only going to continue until the hellfire quest is over with, which (needless to say) has only begun. Please leave a review/constructive criticism for me, & have a good day, ladies & gentlemen.**_


	13. The insect ruler known as The Defiler!

_**Alright! The 4th part of the chapter is at hand! There are no author notes at this time... well, aside from the fact that this chapter is going to get long. Please enjoy the 4th part of the installment in this chapter, ladies & gentlemen.**_

_The insect known as "The Defiler" !_

_**4:20 P.M., The Hive, 1st floor...**_

Orion was still hesitant to stay, mostly due to what he found. He wanted to go back to town, & learn the spell from the book he found. However, he knew that if he left, these new monstrosities will do much more than just throw Tristram into utter chaos. He casted the "Mana Shield", wanting to make sure he didn't wind up dead.

The group went forward, leaving the entrance, & in the process, finding an area that split up into four directions. Before any could even speak, twelve Arachnons & four Shredded beings showed up, with the intent to kill.

Already, five of the Arachnons were destroyed by Kendal. Most of them barely made him sweat at all. Orion managed to cut three of the humongous spiders before having to retreat. One of the arachnons managed to close the distance; he, Orion, slashed at the monster, trying to fend it off. He managed to cut off two of the legs, & bring it down. He was already exhausted, but he felt stronger nonetheless.

Several of the shredded monsters were giving Kendal & Mignon trouble, due to the fact it wasn't easy to hit. The fact that the thing didn't have no true mass, save for the core, made it tough to destroy.

Mignon incinerated three of them with a firebolt spell, while Kendal managed to land the killing blow on the last shredded monster. One of the monstrosities actually dropped a book; the light witch, Mignon, grabbed the book, & put it away in her inventory.

_Meanwhile..._

Mike was at the blacksmith's shop, waiting for Griswold to finish the new weapon that he was working on. In the shop, Griswold was melding several pieces of metal with his hammer on the Anvil of Fury. Already, he had melded the blade. The next thing was the hilt.

" _Great. Now if I could just meld the hilt, then I can meld the next few parts needed to make this weapon.",_ Griswold advocated, already mashing the next few pieces for the hilt with his hammer.

_Later on..._

After fending off several Arachnons & their disgusting brethren, they came across an huge hole that seemed to lead down, but they didn't want to leave any floor without destroying all of the monsters. They knew that leaving the room without checking the area to finish off any disgusting freak accidents of nature that got away would be a mistake that could prove fatal.

Orion looked around, wanting to see what they missed, as did the other three; what they found was a large chest. Kendal opened the large chest, finding nothing but a shield, just enshrouded in magic. Kendal handed it to Orion.

" It would be useless to me; I prefer fighting with the staff or without a weapon or shield at all.", Kendal explained. Handing over the shield to Orion, Kendal looked around. There was no other pathway around, so he left the chest, as did the others. Returning the crossroads, they chose to go right. The only thing they found was another hell boar, & it was looking just as nasty as the last bunch they fought earlier.

Orion rushed forward, aiming to cut it down with several dagger swipes. He missed three times total, while the hellish boar managed to knock him back. He repaid the monster with a dagger swipe from the left. The attack made the creature back off, but it came back, no doubt angry from Orion's work. The monster tried to ram Orion with his huge horns, but he dodged, & punished him with another dagger swipe, this time, ending its deadly onslaught.

Orion looked forward, still ready for whatever was coming next. The next creature that showed up was another shredded being. Its only weakness was probably its heart, but Orion seriously doubted that it would stand idly by while he attempted to attack its heart.

The shredded floated over towards Orion, aiming to realize Orion's untimely demise. Orion was prepared for this; he conjured up his magical energies, while the monster approached. The monster was about to strike upon arrival, but before he could, Orion vanished! The monster was confused, trying to figure out what just happened.

The monster got its answer when a dagger wound up sticking out of its heart; it was Orion's dagger, the "Wizard Spike" no less. The strange being came crashing down, burning away into cinders. Orion walked off, looking to see if there was any more monsters around the area. Oddly enough, there weren't any remaining monsters.

" _Perhaps I was too much?",_ Orion wondered.

Walking toward the three, the group left this section. They came back to the crossroads, & looked around. They chose to take the right, keeping their eyes & ears open. After walking toward the end of the section, out of nowhere, six Stingers, as well as two Arachnons, arrived right in front of the whole group.

All of them rushed towards them. Ninon made sure they didn't reach them by raising a ring of fire all around them. One of the Stingers was caught in the fiery grasp of the ring of fire. One of the Arachnons was also burned to hell by the flames. The remaining monstrosities went back a few steps, wanting to avoid being wasted by the fires the dark witch conjured up. After the fire dissipated, the remaining enemies rushed toward them again.

Kendal rushed towards the one remaining Arachnon, & put an end to its existence with a vicious swing of his staff. The stinger tried to attack the monk with its very own tail, as did the others, but they missed. Orion slashed & slaughtered one of them, while blasting another with the Inferno spell. It also managed to burn another stinger! Mignon, along with her sister, finished the remaining enemies off with a deadly combination of fire & lightning bolts. Most were simply annihilated, while one survived, but was at the brink of death. Orion finished it off with one swing of his dagger, ending the confrontation.

_Back at the blacksmith's shop..._

" Almost done, Mike! Give me some more time. Hang on...", Griswold said as he melded the last part, the last part for the hilt as well as a few other pieces. After a few more minutes on the forge, he managed to meld the whole thing together.

_One hour later..._

After clearing out what remained of the monstrosities on the first floor of the hive, they returned to the entrance that led even deeper into the hive. Kendal was the first to go in, then Orion, then the Beart sisters. Upon arrival, already they found the 3rd entrance that even deeper into the lair of the new threat. To the left of the entrance was another pathway. Kendal was the first to move toward it, & before anyone knew it, a blast of strange energy came out of nowhere. It missed Kendal by inches, but hit Mignon, knocking her into submission.

" Are you OK, Mignon?", Orion asked, checking to see if she was alright. She was, but unconscious. Kendal picked her up, chanted a few words, an azure vortex appeared.

" I will take her back to Tristram, & see Pepin.", Kendal explained. He walked through the portal, & left the hive.

Kendal returned after few minutes. As he stepped out of the portal, the town portal vanished right behind him. They turned their attention to where the shot came from. After a moment or two, a new entity appeared before the three.

The creature was a scary, yet odd sight. It had only one huge eye, as well as tentacles. Like the Shredded beings, this creature could fly in the air too. Its big eye started to glow a little. After three seconds, it fired another bolt of unknown magic. It missed all three, & with that, Kendal destroyed the odd creature with one good swing of his staff.

They went towards the place where the Psychorb came from. When they arrived, they saw nothing but monsters that looked just like the last one Kendal killed several moments ago. There were at least thirty of them. The whole group of Psychorb started shooting bolts of magic, but they missed.

Orion started shooting several firebolt spells toward the Psychorb. More of them showed up, but Ninon blasted them with balls of lightning. Kendal smacked the last few of the Psychorb, finishing the skirmish. They walked into the area where all the strange creatures were in. The only thing Orion found was a chest. Before they could go see what was in the large chest, six stingers took the place of the Psychorb, & then unleashed their onslaught.

Ninon blasted them with bolts of lightning, electrocuting them to death. Orion closed in on the large chest, wanting to see what was inside. When Orion opened the chest, he found a book with a symbol that had a ring of lightning. Putting it in his inventory, he checked around to see what else there was. There were none, but there was another pathway that led even further away from the entrance. They took the pathway, & walked on.

Upon reaching the end, they looked to the left; to their surprise, there were new monsters that were the size of an infant. Its skin was mostly pink, its mouth, almost as big as its own body! The creature started to hop towards the three, but before it could get close enough, Orion stabbed the Hork; it exploded after just one attack.

After killing the Hork, ten more of the new monsters appeared out of the shadows. Rushing toward the three, they managed to close the distance. Orion blocked their attacks while Ninon teleported out of their range. Kendal kicked the monsters, then smacked it with his staff.

After that, the skirmish was over.

There were no other pathways; they left this place, & headed to the entrance to the 3rd floor.

_Back at Tristram..._

Griswold was still working on the new weapon, but he was almost done. Mike went to Adria's shack, wanting to get something that will help him out in the battles ahead.

Mike arrived at the shack, seeing if there was something he could buy. The only thing she had was two books. The one with a bolt of fire didn't interest Mike, but the other book was another story. It was a book that had a man enshrouded in stone. He found out that it would cost him more than 10000 gold, but Mike thought it would be well worth it. The cost of the book was 12000 gold, & although Mike was hesitant at first, he bought the book nevertheless.

" _Maybe this will help me...",_ Mike thought. He returned back to the blacksmith's shop to check on the blade. To his disappointment, it still needed a little more time. Mike decided to read the book he bought.

While Mike read the book he bought, Mignon was at Pepin's home being treated from the nasty attack the Psychorb inflicted upon her. Pepin was almost done with her wounds, but she still wasn't ready to go back just yet.

_Back at the hive..._

At the 3rd floor, the group was still searching for the diabolical fiend who made the dark speech about eating the lives of many people. That wasn't the only diabolical monster around, though...

Already, more Horks, as well as Arachnons were out in force, along with several Venom-tails, ready to tear their enemies apart. The whole area was filled with pits of green liquid, as well as the Arachnons. Already, they had closed the distance, & they aimed to get them all. Orion blasted them with Inferno blasts, incinerating the bugs. Kendal had rushed towards the remaining Arachnon, smacking them with his staff, & avoiding attacks with ease.

The only monsters that were left were more Hork demons. Ninon chanted a few words in Latin while Orion fended them off with his dagger. After about half a minute, Ninon summoned a three-headed dragon out of the ground. The dragon blasted fire bolts at the Horks, each Hork blowing up with every hit.

Going forward, they reached the end of the area, making sure not to leave any enemies unscathed. The group came across another chest, unopened. Ninon opened the chest, finding a book of Mana Shield. She handed it over to Orion, when all of a sudden, one new monster appeared right behind Kendal; the beast struck him down, incapacitating him.

When turned to get a good look at the monster, they noticed that it looked just like the Horks, except that this one was a grand behemoth of destruction. Its size was immense, even bigger than the Skeleton King!

The Hork demon ran toward Ninon, planing to attack her; the sorcerer stepped in the monster's way, & cut the demon back. He then unleashed several streams of Inferno, trying to incinerate the strange being. The monster proved to be resistant to fire, so he swapped to a lightning spell. It wasn't doing as much, to their surprise. The Hork demon started doing something strange; something was coming out of its chest, & in three seconds, there was another Hork.

Orion wasn't about to let that freak spawn anymore monstrosities; he assaulted the Hork spawning demon with his dagger, hitting him only four times. The Hork that was spawned was blasted away by Ninon. When the Hork ruler saw that however, he obviously got angry, & it showed. The ruler of Horks ran towards her, attempting to attack her. The dark witch teleported out of its range, then countered it with several blasts of lightning. The Hork ruler was not damaged to much, but it was enough to anger it even further.

Orion moved in to attack again, but he was knocked back by the Hork king. Ninon tried to finish the beast off, but she was incapacitated with a five sharp blows to the stomach. Orion wasn't about to stand for that. He unleashed the Stone Curse spell, stopping the demon in its tracks. Orion unleashed one more burst of Inferno, then finished it off with a sharp slice of his dagger. The monster fell to the ground, crumbling to pieces.

Orion looked at his two incapacitated friends. Kendal was still unconscious after the blow to the back, as was Ninon; the blows to the stomach were a bit too much for her to handle. Orion remembered about the Town Portal book he received from Adria. Checking his inventory, he found the book. It didn't take him much more than five minutes before he finally learned the spell. He invoked the town portal spell, creating a blue vortex a few steps away from the group. Picking up Ninon & Kendal proved to be a difficult task. If Ninon wasn't the heavy one, then Kendal was, as dragging them was not really much more effective, but nevertheless, he managed to get them back to town. He left the two at the healer's home, but when he turned around, he noticed Mike. He was at the blacksmith's shop, reading a book.

He looked up, noticing Orion. Mike jogged towards the sorcerer.

" I found something for you while I was looking for the Anvil of Fury. Here, take this.", he said, taking out the strangely shaped staff. Orion took the staff, noticing its overwhelming positive power.

" Where did you...!?", Orion began. The only response he got was a shrug. " I found this in the caves, which is a dangerous place by the way.", Mike added.

" They call it "The Protector", a staff that is purely made for defense. I hope it proves to be useful.", he said, walking off to finish his book.

" Mike? The others are at the healers house, still recovering from their wounds. Please, go there & watch over them while I deal with the new threat.", Orion asked. Mike turned around, responding to his request with a simple nod. Orion returned to the insect dungeon after thanking Mike for the new staff.

" _What happened to them?",_ Mike wondered as he entered Pepin's home. He got his answer when he walked into the room they were in, relatively speaking.

_Back at the insect utopia..._

The 3rd floor had no more enemies, nor did it have anything that would prove useful. That was reason enough for Orion; he returned to the entrance of the 3rd floor, but stopped when something caught his eyes. There was another pathway that he didn't explore. He took one cautious step, not wanting to wind up in trouble. Oddly enough, there wasn't a monster within the area; rather, there was another entrance that led to the 4th floor.

Orion prepared himself for what he was about to face, checking his sword & shield. He remembered the staff, making sure to have it close by when in times of danger.

Orion walked into the entrance, & traveled to the 4th floor of the hive, aiming to stop the new threat dead in its tracks.

_Back at Tristram..._

Kendal awoke on a bed at the healer's house. He looked around, noticing Pepin.

" You know, I wouldn't move too much if I were you; whatever hit you must have hit you hard. I am not sure what hit Ninon, but something maleficent & evil must have done something to her. I can say the same thing for Mignon.", Pepin said.

The monk groaned in pain as he laid upwards; his chest was writhing in pain. Looking to the left, he saw Mignon on the bed. Behind her bed was Ninon, still unconscious from her ordeal. Mike was also there, standing by the doorway while reading the book he bought.

" Hey... where is Orion?", Kendal asked.

" He is in the new dungeon, dealing with the monsters that lie in wait in that godforsaken piece of land.", Mike answered, not taking his eyes off the book. He closed the book, & put it away. " I should help him out. I know that he's going to need some serious power to deal with the new threat in that dungeon, or better yet, how about some serious _blade_ of a different sort?", Mike said, forming a riddle that puzzled Kendal.

Kendal noticed a strong aura around Mike, filling the whole room up with magic that far exceeded any magic he knew of. The aura alone awakened the Beart sisters, wanting to know what was causing the disturbance. Mike took something out of his inventory, & showed them whatwas causing the aura.

" Oh. My. _God_. What _is _that!?", Mignon asked. Ninon & Kendal were astounded, nay, _awe-struck_. What they saw was a broad sword that although looked normal, it was enshrouded in a world of magic, its' actual aura showing its color; it was mostly red with several starlight red parts, the aura was acting like a blazing inferno!

" Lets test the blade, shall we?", Mike said.

_Back at the insect utopia..._

Orion was at the fourth floor, _stunned_.

For when he arrived to the 4th floor, he saw green liquid from the other areas down here. There were pools of it surrounding the exit back to the 3rd floor. There was only one pathway; it was forward, past the pools of liquid. After that, the rest of the area was ground-like, relatively speaking.

Near the pools of green liquid, several spiders, markedly different from the Arachnons due to their darker colors, appeared from around the exit to see Orion's demise through to the end.

One of the Spider Lords fired a glob of acid, just like the acid beasts in the other dungeon. This glob of acid, however, was different; the blast went much farther than the pit beasts blast, which was quite apparent. It shot past Orion, barely missing him by inches, then fell into the pools of liquid.

Orion invoked the Mana Shield spell, calling his own mana to his defense. Then he started firing bolts of fire at the Spider Lords, burning two of them to a crisp. The remaining Spider Lords rushed toward him, walking toward the pathway. Already, the monster tried to attack Orion, albeit, it was blocked by his shield. He punished the monster's assault with several swipes of his magic dagger. He finished the insect with one stream of the Inferno spell. The stream of fire also caught the remaining insect behemoths, burning them to hell.

Walking past the incinerated remains of the spiders, he found even more of the spiders. They didn't last long in the battle, what with Orion's dagger still about. They were cut down, bringing their rampage to a bloody halt.

After decimating the last of the Spider Lords, he saw someone... or some_thing_... past the spider corpses; it was a being that had large arms that were the same shape as the Venom Tails & the rest of their brethren. It was mostly green all over its body, its size, even bigger than the hell boars. Its arms were just as long as the behemoth like spiders Orion just faced.

"Come closer, morsel! I smell your terror... & I hunger...", the defiled beast bellowed, rushing toward Orion. After hearing it talk, his suspicions were confirmed; this was the monster who threatened Tristram & life itself, & he was ready to fight the sorcerer head on!

He was prepared for this. Already, before the monster could reach him, Orion turned The Defiler into stone. He put as much distance behind him as he could while blasting him with several bolts of fire.

The Defiler broke free from his rock-like prison, then started to run at serious rapid rates, aiming to cut him down with his arms. The insect ruler had struck him once, but he was still alive, thanks to the Mana Shield spell he had invoked earlier. Another blow, but it missed, albeit, the arm was like a very sharp sword! The Defiler tried to hit him several more times, but Orion blocked them with ease. However, after the 8th hit, he managed to destroy the shield Orion had. He had no shield, & this insect-like beast was just getting started with its onslaught.

Orion managed to blast the insect leader with the Inferno spell, but Orion paid for that when the insect bashed him again while knocking him off balance in the process. Orion attacked the Defiler with his dagger, cutting him three times, but he returned the favor by smacking him down while finally finishing the Mana Shield off. Orion fled, wanting to escape. He took out a full mana potion, & drank it while fleeing the insect ruler.

Orion ditched the monster in the hive, while trying to recover & advocate an attack.

" _What do I do? That monster is not going to die without a fight. How can I defeat it...?",_ he thought, when he noticed a box he hadn't encountered yet. Opening it up, he found a new book. It was the book of stone curse; the symbol of a petrified man was a dead giveaway. There was also a suit of armor that was enshrouded in magic. It was also shaped in a strange way. It was very light, despite the fact it was a little big. Its color mostly red with a little black at several parts.

" _Hmm... I guess I will be reading this book for now, then I will read the book I found here...",_ he thought. He started to read, trying to solve any mysteries it might hold. It took about an hours time before he finally stopped reading the books. Before he left, he remembered the staff Mike gave him before he left. He unequipped the Wizard Spike, then took out The Protector.

" Where are you, delicious morsel? I smell your terror, & I want to eat you alive!", the sadistic insect bellowed.

Orion teleported back to the location where he found The Defiler; already, like a monster with a mission, he dashed towards the sorcerer; he was prepared for the behemoth of an insect.

" You really want to eat me alive? I will NOT allow that to happen!", Orion replied. He started to conjure up his energies, & in less time than usual, the defiler was now imprisoned in stone yet again. Orion didn't stop there. He started unleashing several Inferno blasts, severely damaging the ruler of insects.

" I will eat you alive, no matter what, morsel! You will never escape from me. I will _never_ let you go!", The Defiler screeched after freeing his head from his prison.

" Yes, that is right! Keep coming at me! Never give up!! _Never say die_!!", Orion roared, shooting more streams of the Inferno spell. The monster screeched, moving harder & harder until he finally broke free of its prison. He then attacked Orion, wounding his arm while knocking him down. The Defiler rushed towards him & tried to deliver the final blow; the sorcerer blocked it with his new staff, which caught the insect ruler off guard. The staff was acting like a shield! Orion returned the favor by unleashing his most powerful spell; the Elemental! A being made of mostly fire was released from Orion; the being rushed towards the Defiler, & smashed through his defenses, blowing him up & away from the sorcerer while dealing serious damage in return.

Orion smacked The Defiler with his staff, bashing him left & right, then attempted to finish him off, but The Defiler knocked the young sorcerer down. Before The Defiler had a chance to deliver the killing blow to Orion, someone or some_thing _hit the insect ruler right in the back, knocking it a few steps away from Orion. When he looked at who attacked the enemy, he saw the warrior, Mike with a weapon that clearly wasn't normal. It looked like an ordinary broad sword, but the energy it was emitting was far from ordinary.

" Sorry I'm late. The new weapon Griswold made took some time to make. Everything OK?", Mike asked.

" Lets see you stand up to Griswold's Edge!", Mike shouted, rushing towards the insect ruler. Already, in about three blows, he managed to knock The Defiler away & into the walls. Mike started to conjure his energies. This surprised the sorcerer, as he never saw Mike do something like this. In a few seconds time, he turned The Defiler into stone completely!

" Now! Attack!!", Mike shouted. Orion charged up the rest of his energies; in ten seconds, he unleashed the Elemental spell. When he invoked the spell, another being made of fire was spawned! It didn't waste any time to hit The Defiler, as the fiery being ran toward the ruler of insects.

" No! No! I will have my revenge!", it bellowed as he stood due to the effects of the Stone Curse spell Mike unleashed. In one blow, the Defiler was blasted to Oblivion, its cry of death ringing in the hives.

The only thing it left behind was a scroll. Orion walked to what remained of the demented insect, picking up the scroll. He put it away, & with that, he opened a town portal. They left the hive, their task in that chaotic insect pit done.

_Now at Tristram..._

Mignon, Ninon, Orion, Kendal, & Mike were outside, right next to the fountain; everyone was still exhausted after their ordeal in the chaotic insect world, especially Orion.

"So you completed the quest, Mike?", Orion asked.

" Yes I did. It took Griswold some time to make the weapon, but he finished it.", Mike responded.

" Well. I have a gift for you that might go well with that new blade of yours. It is this magic armor that I am wearing.", Orion said.

" Why? I'll be fine without it, so don't worry about it.", Mike said.

" Oh really? I found me a new armor, & I believe it will help me in the battles ahead.", the sorcerer responded, walking towards the storyteller Cain. The cost may have been 100 hundred, but it should have been 10000, just due to what Orion found.

" This armor is called " Naj's light plate", the legendary sorcerer's armor. Naj was a very powerful spell caster during his time! Before his death, he left behind his armor that was imbued with drastic magic", Cain added, turning away. " It's very light, but it can stand up to most physical blows. His essence contains his legendary magic, & when equipped, A weak spell caster can turn into a tough person to beat.", he finished, putting the gold that Orion gave him in his inventory.

Orion walked toward the Inn, heading towards his room. He took off Arkaine's magic armor, & put on the new armor, Naj's light plate. He was now wearing the new armor, Arkaine's armor in his inventory. Heading outside, he walked towards Mike, & handed him the armor.

" Mike? Arkaine's Valor is yours. I will wear the new armor.", Orion said. Mike was awe-struck by Orion, due to the new armor he was wearing; not only did he look tough to beat, but his armor was emitting magic that rivaled even Griswold's edge, the new blade Griswold made for him.

" Thanks!", Mike responded.

" No thanks needed. I figured you may need new armor, so this might be the one you need.", the sorcerer said.

Ninon looked at Orion, as did Mignon. Kendal was standing still. " Hey. Who's he?", the warrior asked. " That is Kendal the monk. He helped us out while we were at the insect utopia.", the sorcerer explained.

" Now the monsters in the labyrinth won't stand a chance! Yay!", Mignon screeched, jumping up & down. Ninon agreed, for once, as did the others. All five of them returned to the inn, aiming to get back to bed after their ordeal with The Defiler...

_**OK. This is the 4th & final part of the 10th chapter. Just in case something happens to the other chapters, I will make the chapter combined with all four parts.**_

_**For now, I will be working as hard as I can on the next chapter, until then, have a decent day, ladies & gentlemen.**_


	14. The fusion of chapters 10 to 13!

_**This is the 10th chapter when all the pieces are fused together! Of course, with that being said, this will probably be one insane, long story that will last for what will seem like an eternity, which is why I suggest you & your buddies (If any) get some snacks, as well as a few drinks maybe, just to tide yourself over this overgrown part of the story; now, lets begin; relax, read, & enjoy.**_

_The fusion of chapters 10 to 13!_

_**Tristram, 6:00 A.M.**_

Orion was still asleep, when Ninon awoke him. " Wake up. I have an idea.", she explained. Orion was still asleep in her arms; he really didn't look like he was ready, & she knew that he wasn't. Orion opened his eyes, feelings of drowsiness & weakness still coursing through his mind & body.

" You need to train & better yourself. You look very weak. It's best if you do, because not all the time are you going to be able to rely on magic.", Ninon whispered. Orion agreed, hugging her. She smiled, hugging back. Orion rose from the bed, & left Ninon's room, preparing for today.

_Meanwhile..._

Mike awoke, feeling very restless; he had reason to believe he wouldn't be able to help any of his buddies if he doesn't get a weapon that could help stop the evil that dwells within that godless abattoir, mostly thanks to Ninon's efforts when she destroyed his axe at the tomb of King Leoric.

Worse, his weapon didn't look the same, so he tried to repair it. It wasn't as good as Griswold's handiwork, which is what made Mike question its use. Preparing his gear, Mike left his room. He walked down the hallways, past the tables, & out of the inn. He went towards Griswold's smithy, & beckoned him; he got an unexpected response from Griswold.

" Greetings! It's always a pleasure to see one of my best customers. I know that you have venturing deeper into the labyrinth, & there is a story I was told that you may find worth the time to listen to...", Griswold began.

... Needless to say, Mike was intrigued by this; he payed a great deal of attention to what he was about to say.

" One of the men who returned from the labyrinth told me about a mystic anvil that he came across during his escape. His description reminded me of legends I had heard in my youth about the burning hellforge where powerful weapons of magic are crafted. The legend had it that deep within the hellforge rested the Anvil Of Fury! This anvil contained within it the very essence of the demonic underworld...", he explained. Mike was beginning to think of what might come of this.

" It is said that any weapon crafted upon the burning anvil is imbued with great power. If this anvil is indeed the Anvil of Fury, I may be able to make you a weapon capable of defeating even the darkest lord of hell!", Griswold the Blacksmith said. This, also needless to mention, shocked Mike, & made him smile with glee. Imagine his satisfaction if he was to acquire such a weapon!

" Find the anvil for me, & I'll get to work!", Griswold finished. By this time, Mike was smiling, his hands shaking. Orion & the crew were already out of the inn, looking for Mike. They noticed him at Griswold's shop, standing still like a statue; they walked over to investigate, wondering what happened.

He stood still, even when Orion was right in front of him; even when the whole group was right in front of him, he was as still as a rock, the winds passing by silently.

" Alright!", Mike screeched. Everyone's eyebrows raised, including Griswolds. Before anyone had a chance to respond, Mike rushed passed everyone, knocking Mignon & Orion sideways, while Ninon evaded his mad dash via teleportation. Griswold was out of range, so he didn't have to worry about Mike's reckless stampede.

" What was that all about!?", Mignon screamed. Ninon warped right next to her, still looking in the direction that Mike was running. Everyone looked at each other, & then at Griswold.

" I just told him about the Anvil of Fury. It is an anvil that is used to make powerful weapons of magic. If this anvil is indeed the Anvil of Fury, I will make him a weapon that may be capable of defeating even the darkest lord of hell! I am sure I can make him one of the legendary proportions; that is, unless it is actually _not _the Anvil of Fury.", Griswold explained to the three. Everyone's expression, excluding Griswold's, was either blank, or just total confusion... or a pure mix of both.

Walking over to Cain, they asked him if he knew anything about the "Anvil of Fury".

" Griswold speaks of the Anvil of Fury: A legendary artifact long searched for, but never found. Crafted from the metallic bones of the razor pit demons, the anvil was smelt around the skulls of the five most powerful magi of the underworld.", Cain explained. " Carved with runes of power & chaos, any weapon or armor forged upon this anvil will be immersed into the realm of chaos. It is said that the unpredictable nature of chaos makes it difficult to know what the outcome of this smithing will be...", he finished. Everyone walked away after he finished.

" Everyone, we should let Mike go it alone, & let him get the anvil. It will be he who gets the benefit out of that whole quest. Not us.", Orion said.

" Besides, we need to go somewhere else.", Ninon said, turning her attention to Orion. She looked at him with an expression of thought. Orion looked passed Griswold's shop & another house, there was a wall of rocks barely standing; past that was something he couldn't identify, or at least, not until he started walking towards it.

" Orion, what are you doing? Tell Mignon!", Mignon said, albeit, she started to do the same when she noticed what Orion saw. She thought her eyesight was getting worse, but when Ninon started walking towards what Orion is heading toward, someone or some_thing_ had to be there; she walked towards what the other two were moving towards, moving close to the stone wall, barely half Mignon's size.

When they got close enough, they got probably one of the biggest shocks of their life; there was a bridge past the stone wall, & beyond the bridge was a horrible, disgusting, _bloated_, thing swelling out of the ground! Its color was several different types of green, tentacles rising out of the ground, albeit, they were stationary.

" What on Earth is that!?", Mignon asked, completely awestruck.

" This is some bug-like infestation. I can't teleport in unless I want to get surprised by whatever lurks down there.", Ninon said. I was planing to use this as a ploy in my plans earlier when we were enemies, but I won't be doing that now. No reason to attack my allies, as you are well aware of.", Ninon added.

Orion looked past the bug-like creature, only to notice that there was an orchard, an enclosure containing fruit trees & other supplies that most farmers would normally keep.

Ninon tapped upon Orion's shoulder, & directed his attention towards a man very far off in the distance. " That's the farmer who owns this orchard; lets go.", Ninon told everyone. Before they could even take a step towards the farmer, someone was already talking to him; the new entity didn't seem to pleased. Orion rushed toward the twosome, hoping to discover what is going on; upon arrival, the new entity appeared to be quite angry. He left the two, & headed back towards the town's inn.

Orion looked at him as he left the fields. " _What is with him? Is there something that he needs?",_ he thought. Orion walked towards the tavern, looking for him. He wasn't seen there, but when he looked in the direction of where the healer was, he saw the man who was with the farmer, he saw him there, right next to the rocks that were near the healer's home.

" Is something wrong?", Orion asked the stranger. He looked at him with a glare of doom. Orion took a step back while putting his hand on the hilt of the Wizard Spike. The man was an odd sight, wearing sandals, as well as blue pants. He didn't have a shirt or any type of clothing that covered his chest area. He had a strange hair due that consisted of a ponytail, & his skin was somewhat red. He wielded a staff, his expression, total disappointment.

" If you can't help me get something I need to blast through that disgusting horrible, bug-like _thing,_ it would be best if you left me alone.", the stranger replied. " I tried so many times to rid the town of that disgusting thing, but no matter what, it is futile in my case.", he added. It was at this time that Ninon & her sister showed up right behind Orion.

" If you want, you can come with us, & we may be able to help you out.", Ninon said. The monk perked up when she invited him.

" Well... OK. My name is Kendal.", the man said. " I am a monk, looking to survive in this world. My true home was taken from me, & lacking the materials such as iron, I have been forced to use either staves or my actual body as a weapon.", added. Everyone was surprised; he, Kendal, could be even stronger than Mike himself!

" Welcome to the group. My name is Orion. These are my companions Ninon Beart, & her sister, Mignon Beart. My other friend is away, but you will meet him eventually. He is named Mike.", Orion said, introducing two of his three friends to their new companion.

" We should head back to the farmer. I imagine he may be willing to talk to us about this; eventually, he is going to consider the fact that he may not be able to feed his cows, or get any of his supplies.", Orion said.

" Agreed.", Ninon said. The monk, Kendal, didn't.

" Lets check & see if he is willing to let _all_ of us attack the creature.", Ninon advocated.

As expected, the farmer known as Lester actually called all four of them to him.

" So, you're the hero everyone has been talking about. Perhaps you could help a poor, simple farmer out of a terrible mess?", Lester said. " At the edge of my orchard, just south of here, there is a horrible thing swelling out of the ground! I can't get to my crops, or my bales of hay, & my poor cows will starve!", Lester said, looking at the cows with a sad look.

" The witch gave me this & told me that it would blast that thing out of my field. If you could do this for me, I would be forever grateful. I'd do it myself, but someone has to stay here with the cows.", Lester explained.

Lester handed Orion what looked like a strange rune of some sort or another. All four of them looked at the thing.

" It is a rune bomb.", Orion concluded. " We will take care of that horrid thing.", Orion said, leaving Lester to his cows.

When the four arrived there, they saw the swelling insect like thing. Orion got close enough, & put the bomb right next to the disgusting creature. The bomb went off when it touched the infected area; an explosion occurred, destroying the thing, & blasting it to pieces.

" We should tell Lester that the thing has been destroyed.", Mignon said. The four jogged towards Lester, who obviously was happy about the aftermath.

" I heard this explosion from here! Many thanks to you, kind stranger. What with all these things comin' out of the ground, monsters taking over the church, & so forth, these are trying times. I am but a poor farmer, but here, take this with my great thanks.", Lester said, rewarding them with an amulet that looked different.

" It is a 'Auric' Amulet. Its ability is extra gold capacity.", Lester said. Everyone was a little surprised about that.

_Meanwhile, _

Mike was in the labyrinth, at the 8th floor. He managed to get here so far without any encounters.

" Oh man, I should be careful.", Mike said. He walked down the stairs that spiraled downwards. As he made his descent, it was getting warmer for Mike. The farther he went, the hotter it got.

" It is hot down here!", Mike said silently, sweat dripping from his head.

_Back at Tristram..._

" Orion. I sense something from the thing we just blew up.", Ninon said. Orion felt the same way. They were now at Griswold's shop, waiting for Mike.

" Lets check it out, & see what is going on.", Kendal said.

" Right.", Orion agreed.

They treaded towards what remained of the _thing _they blew up with the rune bomb, equipment ready.

_**Tristram, 8:45 A.M., the caves, 9th floor**_

Mike was in the labyrinth, at a cave... which something around in the cave really heated up the situation... literally; it wasn't in sight though. Mike figured it could be those monsters that vanish, just like Shadow Drinker, that may be causing this heat issue. He made sure to keep his blade ready, & with that, he moved forward. The place was dark, & it was quite big. There were no monsters at this time, nor any enemies for that matter.

He came to a stop when he found a section that had a wide opening on the left & the right. That wasn't what caught his eye. When he looked at the ground, he was shocked to see there was actual lava! There was a pathway that only lead around to another part of the area, surrounded by more lava.

"_Oh great... I bet they're around here somewhere near the lava.",_ Mike thought. "_But who?"_, he pondered. He moved to the road surrounded by lava, & walked forward; the pathway turned abruptly to the left, & then forward. Everywhere he looked, he either saw lava, or the rocky walls.

As he crossed the roads surrounded by lava, he came to a place where there actually _wasn't _lava. The place had a door with a wall that wasn't complete. It was a fence like wall with a doorway, & when he moved to the right to see what was beyond the door, he popped right behind the door, _shocked. _He saw what looked like a goat demon, but its skin was very dark, & its fur was almost pitch-black!

" _I didn't expect to run into another one of those freaks. He's dark-skinned, but he looks just like Gharbad & the rest of those goat demons...",_ Mike thought. He looked past the doorway a second time, & he was still standing there wielding a bow.

" _Hmm... this maybe easy... perhaps too easy.", _he thought. By the time he turned around, he noticed that there were now two goat demons. Then, a dozen... & now 25 of them... all of which were armed with bows.

" _Oh man... why do I get the feeling they noticed me...?",_ Mike feared. They, the night goats, raised their bows, cocked their arrows, took aim at the door Mike was hiding behind, & fired several volleys of arrows.

Mike lifted his shield, & blocked several of them while dodging the rest. He opened the door, rushed toward the goat demons, claymore in hand. A few of the goat demons ran for their lives, while others attempted to pelt Mike with arrows. Mike gave the first one a critical blow, knocking him down to the floor with his claymore, dead. Before Mike could move, more arrows were shot.

Mike was dodging them at an ever increasing rate, raising his shield to avoid being struck. He struck another one of the goat demon twice, & killed another one. He almost got hit by the goat demons, & with that, Mike rushed towards the remaining 23 goat demons, & finished them off, slash-&-hack style.

" Man... that was tough.", he thought. He then turned his attention to his surroundings; the left was a dead end, but right was another story. He treaded cautiously toward the path on the right, & then he saw several monsters that looked like the butcher, save for the fact that they were missing a bloody apron, a cleaver, & their color was more yellowish than usual. 6 of them started to rush towards them, albeit, in a slow manner.

Mike retreated, luring them back the pathway surrounded by lava; one rushed slowly towards the pathway, & the two then started slugging each other. The demon tried punching him, albeit, he hit him once. Mike finished him with several hacks, & rushed towards the remaining five. He only got hit about 5 times, but he finished three of them off with his claymore while blocking their punches with the shield.

The two remaining kept on trying to hit him with their fists; a meaningless effort, as they were brought to the ground, stab wounds all around. Mike went past the now dead beings, & then took the pathway the toad demons took.

He then came across another area, which was swarming with with more of the goat demons in the night clan variety. Each were equipped with bows, & before they started slinging bow slinging, & with that, Mike ran for it; a dozen total, as Mike noticed. There was lava right in front of the night goats, & behind them. There was only one pathway that led to the twelve goats, & Mike was taking it with the worst of intentions. Rushing towards the goat demons, he started slinging his sword, hacking them left & right while his brethren kept on firing more arrows. They either missed, or were blocked, & in three blows, one of the night goats were knocked to the floor, dead.

Mike ran towards the night goat demons, while they in turn, fled. He stabbed a second one in the back, & sent it to the ground, meeting the same fate as the last goat demon did. The warrior went towards the goat demons, while the remaining ten beat a retreat from Mike. The goat demons of the night clan found themselves at a dead end, with Mike coming towards them via the only pathway they just took.

Mike sealed their fate with the claymore. The first two were struck down in the back, while another was cornered & slashed; rinse & repeat. The only things they dropped were gold (630 to be exact), & two books. Picking up what he found, he took another look around.

After finishing off those monstrosities, he retraced his steps, & found himself back at the same area where he encountered the second group of night goats. There was a big hole in the wall that led down.

" _I should head back to town.",_ Mike advocated. He was about to leave, but when he looked to the left, he saw something else. It was a large treasure chest, still unopened, right next to the entrance. Mike walked toward it, making sure to keep an eye out for anything out of the ordinary. When he got close enough, he opened the chest. There wasn't much, except a shield with that was emitting very strong magic, as well as a strangely shaped staff that was also radiating with powerful magic. Even better was the fact there was 125 gold. He put what he found in his inventory, eager to see what it was when he returns back to Tristram.

He was about to leave, but before he did, something else caught his attention. There was a horrid stench of death coming from another area that wasn't explored just yet. It was to the left of the entrance he found. He walked towards it, weapon in hand, expecting an enemy to show up. What he found was anything but; he looked at the ground, & noticed the body of a slain hero. His corpse was right next to another hole in the cave, albeit, it lead upwards.

Mike walked towards the body of the slain hero. He noticed that there was something he was carrying right in the bag of his; Mike took whatever it was the slain hero was carrying; what he found was a suit of armor that was overflowing with magical energy. Mike took one last look at the body, & then, he started to look around. He heard several noises that sounded like footsteps.

" Rest in peace, my friend...", Mike said silently, walking towards the area where the noise was coming from. Before he made his seventh step away from the body, out of the shadows came another hideous monster with a horn on his head that was uniquely shaped. Mike evaded the charging attack, & turned to see who it was. The monster was enshrouded with the same stench of death as the corpse of the slain hero was covered in. Mike concluded that this monster was responsible for his death.

The monster made a screech of terror, roaring at the warrior. " Die! I am Break-spine the Cruel!", it bellowed. He made another charge towards Mike, while Mike evaded. He slashed Break-Spine in the back, while the horned demon turned to counterattack.

Mike put some distance behind him, & retreated through the exit he found close to the slain hero's corpse. Arriving back in a clearing behind the town or Tristram, he stopped, a little tired.

" _I need something that can keep him still. But what?", _Mike thought. He then remembered the spell Orion used on Snotspill. " _Man... of all the times for Orion not to be around. Wait a minute...", _

he remembered the books he found in the 9th floor of the dungeon where he killed the second set of night clan goat demons, as well as the last few spells he learned when he identified the last few books they found when they dealt with Zhar. He took them out, wondering what spell books they were.

On the first one he took out, he noticed a symbol that had a small circle that looked like lightning magic. The second one was the book of inferno.

" Not what I had in mind but... they'll do. This might help me stand toe-to-toe with Break-spine the Cruel...", Mike said. He began reading the Inferno spell book; it took him about an 40 minutes before he was done reading the spell book He had some difficulty with the Inferno spell book, but he managed to learn the Inferno spell. The second book took him almost double the time he took learning the Inferno spell. That didn't mean he didn't learn it, & with that, he was done reading. He put the claymore away, & took out the Knights broad sword of readiness out. He also changed his armor from studded leather, to the Obsidian scale mail he found. He was now ready to tackle the monster that doomed the slain hero.

" Psst! Over here!", Someone said. Mike turned around to see a kid step out of the bushes. He was a sad sight, wearing clothes that were quite messy. He also had a peg for one of his legs.

" You're Wirt, aren't you?", Mike asked. The kid nodded.

" I have something for sale, but it will take 50 gold pieces for a look.", Wirt offered. Mike looked at him with a bad look.

" What do you have?", Mike responded, handing over 50 gold pieces. Wirt showed him a ring that was severely flowing with magic.

" It is called a "Steel Ring of Wizardry". It will cost about 6000 in your case.", Wirt offered. He only had 755 + 1000 in his pocket now. He also had some other items to sell, so he decided to wait for now. He declined Wirt's deal, & walked away. He noticed a bridge that lead over a river of water; a short distance away was a house, as another tavern.

" I'm back at Tristram? I guess I found a new shortcut to use.", Mike thought. He walked towards Cain, aiming to identify the stuff he found in the ninth floor of the labyrinthine abattoir.

Cain greeted Mike in the same way he greeted most people. Mike asked him if he could identify the shield, armor, & the staff.

Identifying the staff & the shield he found was at the cost of 300 gold, but he found out it was well worth it; he found a unique shield that was very powerful, containing magic that boosted its armor class valiantly. The armor he found from the slain hero was very tough & sturdy, just like Orion's shield. The staff was uniquely shaped, & it was only known as " The protector", a very powerful staff. It was capable of healing its wielder, while protecting it & boosting Vitality. It also acted as a shield, & a damage reducer. Mike thought it would be best if he gave this to the group. He sold the shield & the armor, & with that, he earned 30000 gold. He then returned to Wirt, aiming to get the ring.

" Hey. I'm back!", Mike said. " 50 gold pieces to take a look at it.", Wirt responded, coming out of the bushes yet again. Mike handed him the gold, & he took another look at the ring.

" You say 6000 right? Here. I'll buy it.", Mike said. Handing him 6000 gold, Wirt gave him the expensive, yet intriguing ( & needless to say, powerful) ring. He equipped the Steel Ring of Wizardry, & left. He turned his attention to the entrance to the 9thfloor; he treaded cautiously, anticipating Break-spine the Cruel's arrival with the worst of intentions...

When he arrived, he notice the unique horned demon was bellowing strange noises.

" Hey! What's the matter? Scared!?", Mike taunted. The animal turned around, & saw Mike, standing at the exit, gear equipped & ready for action. Before the warrior could say anything, eight more horned demons, presumably Break-Spine's, showed up. Mike moved toward Break-Spine, but before he could reach the foul animal, the leader's minions surrounded Mike, while the leader rushed towards him. They all prepared for a charge attack, & then rushed towards him in a fast manner. They thought they could finish him with all nine of them attacking from all sides, but they were wrong.

Before they struck him, Mike ducked. All nine of them missed, & with that, Mike chanted several words, & in three seconds, a circle of lightning surrounded Mike, severely electrocuting most of them to death, while others were significantly weakened. There were only two horned demons left, & that was Break-Spine, & one of his minions; he, Mike, struck the minion with his blade, & finished him off with a burst of the Inferno spell. The lesser minion dropped to the floor after being roasted, dead.

Mike turned around to face the leader of the horned demons, aiming to do something maleficent to him to kill the monster. The unique animal bended down, & rushed towards Mike again, aiming to gore him. Mike sidestepped, & disposed of " The Cruel" as he saw fit. The demon-like animal dropped something that caught Mike's eye. It was a ring with unique designs, black gems embedded on the sides, its color everywhere else, gold-like. It was also radiating with strange, yet powerful magic.

Mike returned to Tristram via the new entrance he found when he retreated earlier. Walking towards Cain, he asked him if he could identify the ring he had. When he paid him the one-hundred gold, he found out that it was no ordinary ring, just as rare as the "Thinking Cap" Orion found.

" This is " The Ring of Engagement"; it's capable of lowering the damage & doing some damage to the opponent when it attacks. It also protects you from harm, while allowing you to lower your opponent's armor.", Cain explained. Thanking him, Mike left. He returned to Griswold's shop, wanting to see what he had for sale. Griswold could tell Mike hadn't found the Anvil of fury yet; it was the look on Mike's face that told him that.

" Nothing yet, eh? Well, keep searching. A weapon forged upon that anvil could be your best hope, & I am sure I can make you one of the legendary proportions.", Griswold told Mike; he nodded, continuing to look at what he had. Nothing had caught his interest, & with that, he returned back to the tavern for a break...

_**2:30 P.M. The tavern of the rising sun, Mike's room...**_

Mike was trying to calm down & rest up after his battle with the monster that killed the slain hero. He was organizing the things he obtained, while figuring out what to do with them. Already, almost 3 hours have passed since, yet Mike was feeling much better after his break. Looking at the unique staff known as "The Protector", he decided this would be a good staff for either Orion or Mignon.

"_I suppose I will just carry them around for now.",_ Mike thought. " _Leaving them around isn't a good idea."_

He left his room, & then the tavern. He went back to the cave, aiming to get the Anvil of Fury.

Upon arrival, he noticed the body of the slain hero, undisturbed. Looking around, there was nothing, not even an enemy. Break-Spine the Cruel was still in the same place where Mike had slain it. He past the corpses & the chest, & had arrived at the other hole that led even deeper into the labyrinth.

" I need to be careful; those monsters in the tenth floor are bound to be stronger than the ones I faced here.", Mike reminded himself. He treaded cautiously down the steps, weapons bared, shield at the ready...

_Meanwhile..._

Orion, Mignon, Ninon & their new recruit, Kendal, were in the hive-like area. Before they could take a step further, they heard a voice that didn't belong to a human, or any other creature for that matter.

" We have long lain dormant, & the time to awaken has come! After our long sleep, we are filled with great hunger. Soon, now, we shall feed...", the horrific voice bellowed. Everyone had a look of confusion &/or terror. Mignon looked around, her eyes wide open. Kendal however stood still, rather calm. Ninon was likewise. Orion was confused, but he also felt a little calm. Out of nowhere came a monster that was quite scary, to say the least. It was a gargantuan spider, on its back legs, insect-like fangs bared.

" Is that...!?", Mignon asked halfway. Orion nodded, preparing himself for any attacks from the humanoid spider. Kendal stared at the spider, surprised about this. Before the spider even made its first move, Kendal stepped in, & put an end to the spider with his staff.

" Is that all? They're not even like the monsters I faced. Whatever the case, we should go find whatever threatened us, & destroy it.", Kendal advocated. Orion was a little surprised, as were the Beart sisters. He had landed the first blow, & the spider monster was already knocked down, already gone to meet its maker.

" I wonder if there even _is_ a challenge at all here.", Kendal said. To everyone's disappointment, several dozen monsters of different kinds, such as spider monsters, strange demon-like boars, & ones that looked like gigantic scorpions appeared five seconds later after Kendal's boasting.

" You were saying, Kendal?", Ninon jeered at Kendal for his foolish taunt. He didn't even speak after an armada of crazy & mortifying insects or hell-boars appeared. His expression went from fearless to cautious, yet overwhelmed. Mignon started firing fireballs toward the stingers, while Ninon electrocuted the rest. Kendal actually took three of the Hell-Boars out without much trouble. That is, until a new creature showed up.

A floating monster that was shredded up, moved toward Kendal; he struck the shredded being, but he barely even damaged the creature at all. He was tough to hit when it came to physical attacks. Orion unleashed several doses of the Inferno spell, incinerating the being. After about five minutes of battling, they finally beat the large group of the new monstrosities.

" Next time, Kendal, learn to keep your big mouth shut.", Ninon roared. Kendal didn't seem to care much. " Watch it; you're no better.", he replied, looking around the corpses, finding a book that had a strange symbol on it. The symbol looked like a being made that was composite of flames.

" Hm? Is that...!?", Orion began, " The Elemental spell!?", he finished, awe-struck. He took the book out of Kendal's hands, & went toward the entrance they took to get into the insect lair. That is, until Kendal intervened.

" Orion! I don't think we should leave; whatever made that speech didn't seem to be joking. An armada of those monsters just tried to kill us, & they were planing to turn everyone around here into food.", Kendal said. " We shouldn't leave until we deal with our pest problem first, lest we wind up being food for the maggots.", he advised. Orion was hesitant, thinking about the book he just found. The book that Zhar gave them was something he should no doubt consider in his arsenal of spells, & the Elemental spell was no exception, as it was a very destructive spell indeed. He wanted to go back to town & learn it now, so he could be prepared for any more problems that may arise. Looking at Ninon, he noticed that she was looking at him too, albeit, she seemed to actually want him to stay here.

Orion agreed to stay after some thought, albeit, he was still uneasy about staying here.

_Later on..._

Mike was at the tenth floor, keeping his eyes open, watching for anything out of the ordinary that had an intentions of his demise. His attempts to sneak around were futile. He either came across diabolical dark clans armed with bows, or magma demons packing serious heat, quite literally. He managed to withstand some of their attacks while countering them with some semi-devastating attacks of his own. After running around in the tenth level of the dungeon, he came across a small island surrounded by lava. On it was a silhouette of an anvil. Before he could even respond, several arrows flew by, missing him by inches. More of the night clan goat demons were around, armed with bows; worse, more of those horrid "horned demons" were back, except their color was obsidian. To top it all off, there were monsters that fired globs of acid, & they seemed to have a leader among them, as did the Obsidian Lords. Gargoyles were swarming the place, at least six of them, & they too had a leader among them.

He ran off, trying to avoid fighting them all, but the leader of the Obsidian Lords prevented his escape. He charged him like a rushing bull, but the wild animal missed. The pit beasts fired several globs of acid, but they only landed in the lava or the ground mercifully. Mike was running more than he was attacking, which wasn't what he liked doing. He saw an opening in their attack patterns, & unleashed the Inferno spell towards the pit beasts. It did some damage to a few of the acid beasts, but it did very little to the leader, if any damage at all. Finishing a few of them off with his sword, he ran.

The gargoyles proved to be those most frustrating pack of monstrosities he had to deal with so far. Tough to hit, & having strong attacks, but they really were slow. He managed to pick one of them off before having to run. The goat demons couldn't get him due to the other groups of monsters being in their way. One of them actually hit the leader of the obsidian lords right in the back, immobilizing him temporarily. Mike rushed toward him, & delivered the killing blow to the leader. It dropped something, but he didn't have time to pick it up. He ran again, barely managing to avoid their attacks. He was getting exhausted after having to move like crazy.

He unleashed several more doses of the Inferno spell towards the pit beasts again, this time, killing two of them off, but it barely even damaged the leader. Getting frustrated, Mike rushed toward him, blade in hand. The leader of the pit beasts ran away, trying to avoid his wrath, but Mike anticipated his retreat, & caught up to him, planing to repay him for his troublesome interference. In three vicious hacks, the beast was felled, its acid-like blood spilling on the hot ground. It dropped something too, & this time, Mike had time to pick it up; it was an amulet that was filled with magic. Most of them were lost without their leader; losing their leader was like chopping the head of a snake off, making them relatively harmless. Mike finished them off, while avoiding the arrows of the night clan. The only remaining threats, if any, were the gargoyles. There were only five left, but that didn't make them any less dangerous than they were right now, or at least they were not much less dangerous than before, even after killing one of their comrades.

Mike picked off another one of the flying demons while taking a nasty claw strike from another one. Mike rushed toward the goat demons, advocating a plan with the worst of intentions. He struck one of the twelve night goats down, while significantly damaging another. He chased them down the pathway between the lava, & after cornering them, he took them down, slash-&-hack style. The gargoyles were a little ways off, but Mike expected them to come right for him. Oddly enough, they didn't. Rather, they went to a place, & then sat down, becoming stone statues while becoming completely immobile in the process. He went for the item that the obsidian lord had dropped, after finishing off the rest of the Obsidian lords that is. It was another amulet, & like the other amulet, this one was also flowing with magical energy.

Mike took one look at the anvil; it must be the Anvil of Fury. There were strange markings on the anvil that you wouldn't normally see on an anvil, or a normal one for that matter. It was very heavy to pick up, but he still managed to put it in his inventory.

" I need to get this to Griswold!", he said quickly. He went to take out another scroll of town portal, but he didn't have one! Mike had to improvise, but with what? He looked up ahead, trying to figure out if there was a way out if this chaotic deathtrap. He noticed that there were only four gargoyles, their leader among them on the right of the pathway that lead to the Anvil's location. He then noticed another pathway that went left, leading away from the monsters; he retreated in a hastily manner, aiming to get back to town, unscathed.

He rushed through the hot caves, encountering a magma demon every now & then. He rushed past a few of the magma demons, while cutting them down; The next monster he ran into was another acid beast. He didn't dare let the deadly monster fire even a single glob of acid; he cut his life short by firing one dose of Inferno, incinerating the monster.

running away from the now-smoldering piles of acid, he made it back to the entrance to 10th level. He walked up the steps, & returned to the 9th floor.

Upon arrival, he turned to the right, & went towards the pathway that lead back up to Tristram. He still had his blade, ready to slaughter any enemy that got in his way, shield bared for any oncoming attack.

he returned to Tristram with the Anvil of Fury. He went for the storyteller, aiming to identify the amulets he had found. One of them actually enabled him to recover very quickly, while the other amulet only allowed him to learn more spells & tap into even more spell slinging. Both identifications were at the cost of a hundred gold each.

His next visit was to the blacksmith, Griswold. He walked toward him, & Griswold could tell that he had brought him the anvil, due to the rather positive expression on his face.

" Oh, I can hardly believe it! This is the Anvil of Fury! Good work my friend. Now, we'll show those bastards that there are no weapons in hell more deadly than those made by men!", Griswold began, congratulating Mike.

Mike gave the blacksmith the anvil from Mike's inventory, & went into the workshops forging room. Griswold began working on the weapon he had planned, aiming to make one of the ultimate weapons he probably will ever make...

_**4:20 P.M., The Hive, 1st floor...**_

Orion was still hesitant to stay, mostly due to what he found. He wanted to go back to town, & learn the spell from the book he found. However, he knew that if he left, these new monstrosities will do much more than just throw Tristram into utter chaos. He casted the "Mana Shield", wanting to make sure he didn't wind up dead.

The group went forward, leaving the entrance, & in the process, finding an area that split up into four directions. Before any could even speak, twelve Arachnons & four Shredded beings showed up, with the intent to kill.

Already, five of the Arachnons were destroyed by Kendal. Most of them barely made him sweat at all. Orion managed to cut three of the humongous spiders before having to retreat. One of the arachnons managed to close the distance; he, Orion, slashed at the monster, trying to fend it off. He managed to cut off two of the legs, & bring it down. He was already exhausted, but he felt stronger nonetheless.

Several of the shredded monsters were giving Kendal & Mignon trouble, due to the fact it wasn't easy to hit. The fact that the thing didn't have no true mass, save for the core, made it tough to destroy.

Mignon incinerated three of them with a firebolt spell, while Kendal managed to land the killing blow on the last shredded monster. One of the monstrosities actually dropped a book; the light witch, Mignon, grabbed the book, & put it away in her inventory.

_Meanwhile..._

Mike was at the blacksmith's shop, waiting for Griswold to finish the new weapon that he was working on. In the shop, Griswold was melding several pieces of metal with his hammer on the Anvil of Fury. Already, he had melded the blade. The next thing was the hilt.

" _Great. Now if I could just meld the hilt, then I can meld the next few parts needed to make this weapon.",_ Griswold advocated, already mashing the next few pieces for the hilt with his hammer.

_Later on..._

After fending off several Arachnons & their disgusting brethren, they came across an huge hole that seemed to lead down, but they didn't want to leave any floor without destroying all of the monsters. They knew that leaving the room without checking the area to finish off any disgusting freak accidents of nature that got away would be a mistake that could prove fatal.

Orion looked around, wanting to see what they missed, as did the other three; what they found was a large chest. Kendal opened the large chest, finding nothing but a shield, just enshrouded in magic. Kendal handed it to Orion.

" It would be useless to me; I prefer fighting with the staff or without a weapon or shield at all.", Kendal explained. Handing over the shield to Orion, Kendal looked around. There was no other pathway around, so he left the chest, as did the others. Returning the crossroads, they chose to go right. The only thing they found was another hell boar, & it was looking just as nasty as the last bunch they fought earlier.

Orion rushed forward, aiming to cut it down with several dagger swipes. He missed three times total, while the hellish boar managed to knock him back. He repaid the monster with a dagger swipe from the left. The attack made the creature back off, but it came back, no doubt angry from Orion's work. The monster tried to ram Orion with his huge horns, but he dodged, & punished him with another dagger swipe, this time, ending its deadly onslaught.

Orion looked forward, still ready for whatever was coming next. The next creature that showed up was another shredded being. Its only weakness was probably its heart, but Orion seriously doubted that it would stand idly by while he attempted to attack its heart.

The shredded floated over towards Orion, aiming to realize Orion's untimely demise. Orion was prepared for this; he conjured up his magical energies, while the monster approached. The monster was about to strike upon arrival, but before he could, Orion vanished! The monster was confused, trying to figure out what just happened.

The monster got its answer when a dagger wound up sticking out of its heart; it was Orion's dagger, the "Wizard Spike" no less. The strange being came crashing down, burning away into cinders. Orion walked off, looking to see if there was any more monsters around the area. Oddly enough, there weren't any remaining monsters.

" _Perhaps I was too much?",_ Orion wondered.

Walking toward the three, the group left this section. They came back to the crossroads, & looked around. They chose to take the right, keeping their eyes & ears open. After walking toward the end of the section, out of nowhere, six Stingers, as well as two Arachnons, arrived right in front of the whole group.

All of them rushed towards them. Ninon made sure they didn't reach them by raising a ring of fire all around them. One of the Stingers was caught in the fiery grasp of the ring of fire. One of the Arachnons was also burned to hell by the flames. The remaining monstrosities went back a few steps, wanting to avoid being wasted by the fires the dark witch conjured up. After the fire dissipated, the remaining enemies rushed toward them again.

Kendal rushed towards the one remaining Arachnon, & put an end to its existence with a vicious swing of his staff. The stinger tried to attack the monk with its very own tail, as did the others, but they missed. Orion slashed & slaughtered one of them, while blasting another with the Inferno spell. It also managed to burn another stinger! Mignon, along with her sister, finished the remaining enemies off with a deadly combination of fire & lightning bolts. Most were simply annihilated, while one survived, but was at the brink of death. Orion finished it off with one swing of his dagger, ending the confrontation.

_Back at the blacksmith's shop..._

" Almost done, Mike! Give me some more time. Hang on...", Griswold said as he melded the last part, the last part for the hilt as well as a few other pieces. After a few more minutes on the forge, he managed to meld the whole thing together.

_One hour later..._

After clearing out what remained of the monstrosities on the first floor of the hive, they returned to the entrance that led even deeper into the hive. Kendal was the first to go in, then Orion, then the Beart sisters. Upon arrival, already they found the 3rd entrance that even deeper into the lair of the new threat. To the left of the entrance was another pathway. Kendal was the first to move toward it, & before anyone knew it, a blast of strange energy came out of nowhere. It missed Kendal by inches, but hit Mignon, knocking her into submission.

" Are you OK, Mignon?", Orion asked, checking to see if she was alright. She was, but unconscious. Kendal picked her up, chanted a few words, an azure vortex appeared.

" I will take her back to Tristram, & see Pepin.", Kendal explained. He walked through the portal, & left the hive.

Kendal returned after few minutes. As he stepped out of the portal, the town portal vanished right behind him. They turned their attention to where the shot came from. After a moment or two, a new entity appeared before the three.

The creature was a scary, yet odd sight. It had only one huge eye, as well as tentacles. Like the Shredded beings, this creature could fly in the air too. Its big eye started to glow a little. After three seconds, it fired another bolt of unknown magic. It missed all three, & with that, Kendal destroyed the odd creature with one good swing of his staff.

They went towards the place where the Psychorb came from. When they arrived, they saw nothing but monsters that looked just like the last one Kendal killed several moments ago. There were at least thirty of them. The whole group of Psychorb started shooting bolts of magic, but they missed.

Orion started shooting several firebolt spells toward the Psychorb. More of them showed up, but Ninon blasted them with balls of lightning. Kendal smacked the last few of the Psychorb, finishing the skirmish. They walked into the area where all the strange creatures were in. The only thing Orion found was a chest. Before they could go see what was in the large chest, six stingers took the place of the Psychorb, & then unleashed their onslaught.

Ninon blasted them with bolts of lightning, electrocuting them to death. Orion closed in on the large chest, wanting to see what was inside. When Orion opened the chest, he found a book with a symbol that had a ring of lightning. Putting it in his inventory, he checked around to see what else there was. There were none, but there was another pathway that led even further away from the entrance. They took the pathway, & walked on.

Upon reaching the end, they looked to the left; to their surprise, there were new monsters that were the size of an infant. Its skin was mostly pink, its mouth, almost as big as its own body! The creature started to hop towards the three, but before it could get close enough, Orion stabbed the Hork; it exploded after just one attack.

After killing the Hork, ten more of the new monsters appeared out of the shadows. Rushing toward the three, they managed to close the distance. Orion blocked their attacks while Ninon teleported out of their range. Kendal kicked the monsters, then smacked it with his staff.

After that, the skirmish was over.

There were no other pathways; they left this place, & headed to the entrance to the 3rd floor.

_Back at Tristram..._

Griswold was still working on the new weapon, but he was almost done. Mike went to Adria's shack, wanting to get something that will help him out in the battles ahead.

Mike arrived at the shack, seeing if there was something he could buy. The only thing she had was two books. The one with a bolt of fire didn't interest Mike, but the other book was another story. It was a book that had a man enshrouded in stone. He found out that it would cost him more than 10000 gold, but Mike thought it would be well worth it. The cost of the book was 12000 gold, & although Mike was hesitant at first, he bought the book nevertheless.

" _Maybe this will help me...",_ Mike thought. He returned back to the blacksmith's shop to check on the blade. To his disappointment, it still needed a little more time. Mike decided to read the book he bought.

While Mike read the book he bought, Mignon was at Pepin's home being treated from the nasty attack the Psychorb inflicted upon her. Pepin was almost done with her wounds, but she still wasn't ready to go back just yet.

_Back at the hive..._

At the 3rd floor, the group was still searching for the diabolical fiend who made the dark speech about eating the lives of many people. That wasn't the only diabolical monster around, though...

Already, more Horks, as well as Arachnons were out in force, along with several Venom-tails, ready to tear their enemies apart. The whole area was filled with pits of green liquid, as well as the Arachnons. Already, they had closed the distance, & they aimed to get them all. Orion blasted them with Inferno blasts, incinerating the bugs. Kendal had rushed towards the remaining Arachnon, smacking them with his staff, & avoiding attacks with ease.

The only monsters that were left were more Hork demons. Ninon chanted a few words in Latin while Orion fended them off with his dagger. After about half a minute, Ninon summoned a three-headed dragon out of the ground. The dragon blasted fire bolts at the Horks, each Hork blowing up with every hit.

Going forward, they reached the end of the area, making sure not to leave any enemies unscathed. The group came across another chest, unopened. Ninon opened the chest, finding a book of Mana Shield. She handed it over to Orion, when all of a sudden, one new monster appeared right behind Kendal; the beast struck him down, incapacitating him.

When turned to get a good look at the monster, they noticed that it looked just like the Horks, except that this one was a grand behemoth of destruction. Its size was immense, even bigger than the Skeleton King!

The Hork demon ran toward Ninon, planing to attack her; the sorcerer stepped in the monster's way, & cut the demon back. He then unleashed several streams of Inferno, trying to incinerate the strange being. The monster proved to be resistant to fire, so he swapped to a lightning spell. It wasn't doing as much, to their surprise. The Hork demon started doing something strange; something was coming out of its chest, & in three seconds, there was another Hork.

Orion wasn't about to let that freak spawn anymore monstrosities; he assaulted the Hork spawning demon with his dagger, hitting him only four times. The Hork that was spawned was blasted away by Ninon. When the Hork ruler saw that however, he obviously got angry, & it showed. The ruler of Horks ran towards her, attempting to attack her. The dark witch teleported out of its range, then countered it with several blasts of lightning. The Hork ruler was not damaged to much, but it was enough to anger it even further.

Orion moved in to attack again, but he was knocked back by the Hork king. Ninon tried to finish the beast off, but she was incapacitated with a five sharp blows to the stomach. Orion wasn't about to stand for that. He unleashed the Stone Curse spell, stopping the demon in its tracks. Orion unleashed one more burst of Inferno, then finished it off with a sharp slice of his dagger. The monster fell to the ground, crumbling to pieces.

Orion looked at his two incapacitated friends. Kendal was still unconscious after the blow to the back, as was Ninon; the blows to the stomach were a bit too much for her to handle. Orion remembered about the Town Portal book he received from Adria. Checking his inventory, he found the book. It didn't take him much more than five minutes before he finally learned the spell. He invoked the town portal spell, creating a blue vortex a few steps away from the group. Picking up Ninon & Kendal proved to be a difficult task. If Ninon wasn't the heavy one, then Kendal was, as dragging them was not really much more effective, but nevertheless, he managed to get them back to town. He left the two at the healer's home, but when he turned around, he noticed Mike. He was at the blacksmith's shop, reading a book.

He looked up, noticing Orion. Mike jogged towards the sorcerer.

" I found something for you while I was looking for the Anvil of Fury. Here, take this.", he said, taking out the strangely shaped staff. Orion took the staff, noticing its overwhelming positive power.

" Where did you...!?", Orion began. The only response he got was a shrug. " I found this in the caves, which is a dangerous place by the way.", Mike added.

" They call it "The Protector", a staff that is purely made for defense. I hope it proves to be useful.", he said, walking off to finish his book.

" Mike? The others are at the healers house, still recovering from their wounds. Please, go there & watch over them while I deal with the new threat.", Orion asked. Mike turned around, responding to his request with a simple nod. Orion returned to the insect dungeon after thanking Mike for the new staff.

" _What happened to them?",_ Mike wondered as he entered Pepin's home. He got his answer when he walked into the room they were in, relatively speaking.

_Back at the insect utopia..._

The 3rd floor had no more enemies, nor did it have anything that would prove useful. That was reason enough for Orion; he returned to the entrance of the 3rd floor, but stopped when something caught his eyes. There was another pathway that he didn't explore. He took one cautious step, not wanting to wind up in trouble. Oddly enough, there wasn't a monster within the area; rather, there was another entrance that led to the 4th floor.

Orion prepared himself for what he was about to face, checking his sword & shield. He remembered the staff, making sure to have it close by when in times of danger.

Orion walked into the entrance, & traveled to the 4th floor of the hive, aiming to stop the new threat dead in its tracks.

_Back at Tristram..._

Kendal awoke on a bed at the healer's house. He looked around, noticing Pepin.

" You know, I wouldn't move too much if I were you; whatever hit you must have hit you hard. I am not sure what hit Ninon, but something maleficent & evil must have done something to her. I can say the same thing for Mignon.", Pepin said.

The monk groaned in pain as he laid upwards; his chest was writhing in pain. Looking to the left, he saw Mignon on the bed. Behind her bed was Ninon, still unconscious from her ordeal. Mike was also there, standing by the doorway while reading the book he bought.

" Hey... where is Orion?", Kendal asked.

" He is in the new dungeon, dealing with the monsters that lie in wait in that godforsaken piece of land.", Mike answered, not taking his eyes off the book. He closed the book, & put it away. " I should help him out. I know that he's going to need some serious power to deal with the new threat in that dungeon, or better yet, how about some serious _blade_ of a different sort?", Mike said, forming a riddle that puzzled Kendal.

Kendal noticed a strong aura around Mike, filling the whole room up with magic that far exceeded any magic he knew of. The aura alone awakened the Beart sisters, wanting to know what was causing the disturbance. Mike took something out of his inventory, & showed them whatwas causing the aura.

" Oh. My. _God_. What _is _that!?", Mignon asked. Ninon & Kendal were astounded, nay, _awe-struck_. What they saw was a broad sword that although looked normal, it was enshrouded in a world of magic, its' actual aura showing its color; it was mostly red with several starlight red parts, the aura was acting like a blazing inferno!

" Lets test the blade, shall we?", Mike said.

_Back at the insect utopia..._

Orion was at the fourth floor, _stunned_.

For when he arrived to the 4th floor, he saw green liquid from the other areas down here. There were pools of it surrounding the exit back to the 3rd floor. There was only one pathway; it was forward, past the pools of liquid. After that, the rest of the area was ground-like, relatively speaking.

Near the pools of green liquid, several spiders, markedly different from the Arachnons due to their darker colors, appeared from around the exit to see Orion's demise through to the end.

One of the Spider Lords fired a glob of acid, just like the acid beasts in the other dungeon. This glob of acid, however, was different; the blast went much farther than the pit beasts blast, which was quite apparent. It shot past Orion, barely missing him by inches, then fell into the pools of liquid.

Orion invoked the Mana Shield spell, calling his own mana to his defense. Then he started firing bolts of fire at the Spider Lords, burning two of them to a crisp. The remaining Spider Lords rushed toward him, walking toward the pathway. Already, the monster tried to attack Orion, albeit, it was blocked by his shield. He punished the monster's assault with several swipes of his magic dagger. He finished the insect with one stream of the Inferno spell. The stream of fire also caught the remaining insect behemoths, burning them to hell.

Walking past the incinerated remains of the spiders, he found even more of the spiders. They didn't last long in the battle, what with Orion's dagger still about. They were cut down, bringing their rampage to a bloody halt.

After decimating the last of the Spider Lords, he saw someone... or some_thing_... past the spider corpses; it was a being that had large arms that were the same shape as the Venom Tails & the rest of their brethren. It was mostly green all over its body, its size, even bigger than the hell boars. Its arms were just as long as the behemoth like spiders Orion just faced.

"Come closer, morsel! I smell your terror... & I hunger...", the defiled beast bellowed, rushing toward Orion. After hearing it talk, his suspicions were confirmed; this was the monster who threatened Tristram & life itself, & he was ready to fight the sorcerer head on!

He was prepared for this. Already, before the monster could reach him, Orion turned The Defiler into stone. He put as much distance behind him as he could while blasting him with several bolts of fire.

The Defiler broke free from his rock-like prison, then started to run at serious rapid rates, aiming to cut him down with his arms. The insect ruler had struck him once, but he was still alive, thanks to the Mana Shield spell he had invoked earlier. Another blow, but it missed, albeit, the arm was like a very sharp sword! The Defiler tried to hit him several more times, but Orion blocked them with ease. However, after the 8th hit, he managed to destroy the shield Orion had. He had no shield, & this insect-like beast was just getting started with its onslaught.

Orion managed to blast the insect leader with the Inferno spell, but Orion paid for that when the insect bashed him again while knocking him off balance in the process. Orion attacked the Defiler with his dagger, cutting him three times, but he returned the favor by smacking him down while finally finishing the Mana Shield off. Orion fled, wanting to escape. He took out a full mana potion, & drank it while fleeing the insect ruler.

Orion ditched the monster in the hive, while trying to recover & advocate an attack.

" _What do I do? That monster is not going to die without a fight. How can I defeat it...?",_ he thought, when he noticed a box he hadn't encountered yet. Opening it up, he found a new book. It was the book of stone curse; the symbol of a petrified man was a dead giveaway. There was also a suit of armor that was enshrouded in magic. It was also shaped in a strange way. It was very light, despite the fact it was a little big. Its color mostly red with a little black at several parts.

" _Hmm... I guess I will be reading this book for now, then I will read the book I found here...",_ he thought. He started to read, trying to solve any mysteries it might hold. It took about an hours time before he finally stopped reading the books. Before he left, he remembered the staff Mike gave him before he left. He unequipped the Wizard Spike, then took out The Protector.

" Where are you, delicious morsel? I smell your terror, & I want to eat you alive!", the sadistic insect bellowed.

Orion teleported back to the location where he found The Defiler; already, like a monster with a mission, he dashed towards the sorcerer; he was prepared for the behemoth of an insect.

" You really want to eat me alive? I will NOT allow that to happen!", Orion replied. He started to conjure up his energies, & in less time than usual, the defiler was now imprisoned in stone yet again. Orion didn't stop there. He started unleashing several Inferno blasts, severely damaging the ruler of insects.

" I will eat you alive, no matter what, morsel! You will never escape from me. I will _never_ let you go!", The Defiler screeched after freeing his head from his prison.

" Yes, that is right! Keep coming at me! Never give up!! _Never say die_!!", Orion roared, shooting more streams of the Inferno spell. The monster screeched, moving harder & harder until he finally broke free of its prison. He then attacked Orion, wounding his arm while knocking him down. The Defiler rushed towards him & tried to deliver the final blow; the sorcerer blocked it with his new staff, which caught the insect ruler off guard. The staff was acting like a shield! Orion returned the favor by unleashing his most powerful spell; the Elemental! A being made of mostly fire was released from Orion; the being rushed towards the Defiler, & smashed through his defenses, blowing him up & away from the sorcerer while dealing serious damage in return.

Orion smacked The Defiler with his staff, bashing him left & right, then attempted to finish him off, but The Defiler knocked the young sorcerer down. Before The Defiler had a chance to deliver the killing blow to Orion, someone or some_thing _hit the insect ruler right in the back, knocking it a few steps away from Orion. When he looked at who attacked the enemy, he saw the warrior, Mike with a weapon that clearly wasn't normal. It looked like an ordinary broad sword, but the energy it was emitting was far from ordinary.

" Sorry I'm late. The new weapon Griswold made took some time to make. Everything OK?", Mike asked.

" Lets see you stand up to Griswold's Edge!", Mike shouted, rushing towards the insect ruler. Already, in about three blows, he managed to knock The Defiler away & into the walls. Mike started to conjure his energies. This surprised the sorcerer, as he never saw Mike do something like this. In a few seconds time, he turned The Defiler into stone completely!

" Now! Attack!!", Mike shouted. Orion charged up the rest of his energies; in ten seconds, he unleashed the Elemental spell. When he invoked the spell, another being made of fire was spawned! It didn't waste any time to hit The Defiler, as the fiery being ran toward the ruler of insects.

" No! No! I will have my revenge!", it bellowed as he stood due to the effects of the Stone Curse spell Mike unleashed. In one blow, the Defiler was blasted to Oblivion, its cry of death ringing in the hives.

The only thing it left behind was a scroll. Orion walked to what remained of the demented insect, picking up the scroll. He put it away, & with that, he opened a town portal. They left the hive, their task in that chaotic insect pit done.

_Now at Tristram..._

Mignon, Ninon, Orion, Kendal, & Mike were outside, right next to the fountain; everyone was still exhausted after their ordeal in the chaotic insect world, especially Orion.

"So you completed the quest, Mike?", Orion asked.

" Yes I did. It took Griswold some time to make the weapon, but he finished it.", Mike responded.

" Well. I have a gift for you that might go well with that new blade of yours. It is this magic armor that I am wearing.", Orion said.

" Why? I'll be fine without it, so don't worry about it.", Mike said.

" Oh really? I found me a new armor, & I believe it will help me in the battles ahead.", the sorcerer responded, walking towards the storyteller Cain. The cost may have been 100 hundred, but it should have been 10000, just due to what Orion found.

" This armor is called " Naj's light plate", the legendary sorcerer's armor. Naj was a very powerful spell caster during his time! Before his death, he left behind his armor that was imbued with drastic magic", Cain added, turning away. " It's very light, but it can stand up to most physical blows. His essence contains his legendary magic, & when equipped, A weak spell caster can turn into a tough person to beat.", he finished, putting the gold that Orion gave him in his inventory.

Orion walked toward the Inn, heading towards his room. He took off Arkaine's magic armor, & put on the new armor, Naj's light plate. He was now wearing the new armor, Arkaine's armor in his inventory. Heading outside, he walked towards Mike, & handed him the armor.

" Mike? Arkaine's Valor is yours. I will wear the new armor.", Orion said. Mike was awe-struck by Orion, due to the new armor he was wearing; not only did he look tough to beat, but his armor was emitting magic that rivaled even Griswold's edge, the new blade Griswold made for him.

" Thanks!", Mike responded.

" No thanks needed. I figured you may need new armor, so this might be the one you need.", the sorcerer said.

Ninon looked at Orion, as did Mignon. Kendal was standing still. " Hey. Who's he?", the warrior asked. " That is Kendal the monk. He helped us out while we were at the insect utopia.", the sorcerer explained.

" Now the monsters in the labyrinth won't stand a chance! Yay!", Mignon screeched, jumping up & down. Ninon agreed, for once, as did the others. All five of them returned to the inn, aiming to get back to bed after their ordeal with The Defiler...

**_OK. This is the 4th & final part of the 10th chapter. Just in case something happens to the other chapters, I will make the chapter combined with all four parts._**

**_For now, I will be working as hard as I can on the next chapter, until then, have a decent day, ladies & gentlemen._**


End file.
